It's Just Practice
by oOoIZZYoOo
Summary: Arnold finally has the courage to ask out the love of his life- a young miss Lila Sawyer. But when his date goes horribly awry Arnold knows that if he's going to keep her he's going to need some outside help...but from who?
1. The Good Mood

It's Just Practice

Chapter One: Good Mood

It was a fateful March afternoon in the town of Hillwood. One wouldn't think it was a fateful day for it seemed to be perfectly ordinary. The sun was shining, the children playing, the birds flying. No, if one was to choose a fateful day for a story to begin you would not choose this one. Alas here we are, watching over without interest, trying to find the smudge of difference in the cities sea of mediocrity. Try as you might however you cannot find it, for all looks peaceful and plain within the cities walls; everything but a carefully wrapped package and the tiny plant that resides within it.

Now if we were to look at that package, to see what was inside of it, to analyze that little plant's leaves or the address from which the plant was sent, we would find nothing. Nothing out of the ordinary- nothing out of the mundane- and that's to be expected for it was a perfectly normal plant. But had they sent a different kind, or left it just a day later than it should have been- well perhaps we would have no story.

And that, that is what makes this little plant so interesting…

"Delivery!"

A barrage of tiny feet running down the hall could be heard even from outside the building. The postman quickly dropped the package onto the used and worn welcome mat, running down the steps in an attempt to avoid being pummeled by the plethora of animals now rushing toward the door. As it swung open the animals rushed out and onto the street, chasing after him while an old man limped out onto the porch.

"Who's there? If this is another prank-" He stopped his mumbling as his eyes fell down onto the small gift left for the household. He picked it up, examining it for a moment before shouting back up the stairs.

"Hey shortman, there's a package for you at the door!" A tall figure ran down the stairway, worryingly throwing his jacket on over his plaid shirt. Arnold hopped down the stairs; jersey and bag slung over his shoulder as he stuffed the papers he was holding into his mouth to quickly zip the duffel bag up.

"Thanks grandpa, can you go put it up in my room? I'm really late for practice." Arnold yelled taking out the papers before shuffling down the cement stairs.

"Well sure Arnold but…what is it?" Grandpa asked, shaking the box like a child. Arnold groaned grabbing onto his grandfather's hands to stop the shaking before shoving the papers into his pack.

"It's a cactus!" Arnold yelled out, taking off towards a convertible parked outside of the house. Grandpa looked down at the package for a moment before shrugging and closing the door behind him, not bothering to ask why the young boy had ordered a cactus in the first place- it wasn't like stranger things hadn't happened in just that morning.

"Arnold man, where the hell have you been?"

"Sorry Gerald, time got away from me I guess" Arnold yelled hopping into the red car parked outside of his home. Gerald shrugged before starting up the engine. Arnold leaned back, throwing his things into the back seat before taking in a breath of relief.

"You seem to be doing that a lot lately." Gerald mumbled taking off into the open street. Arnold quickly slipped off his shoes started to replace them with more active footwear, all the while glancing at the clock for the damage.

"Doing what?" he asked absentmindedly.

"Losing track of time." Gerald clarified with a snip in his voice.

"I mean not that I mind man but if we keep showing up late to practices-"

"I know, I know I'm really sorry Gerald." Arnold apologized. Gerald glanced over at him before coming to a slow stop at a light.

"So you going to tell me what's going on with you?" He asked without too much urgency. Arnold laughed a bit nervously, not knowing how to answer when he himself couldn't figure out what was wrong. He pushed his hair back taking in a small breath.

"Uhh, I don't know really. I guess this final project is just really-" Arnold paused, his eyes drifting along with his mind as the world outside of them passed by. He smiled lowly to himself, resting his head on his wrist as Gerald gave out a heavy groan. The car came to an abrupt halt, sending Arnold's head flying into the dashboard with a dull 'thunk'.

"Ah! What was that for?" Arnold groaned, rubbing a now red spot on his forehead. Gerald shook his head in irritation and handed him the top of his seatbelt. Arnold begrudgingly took it, not even noticing that he had forgotten to put it on.

"Something's wrong with you man." Gerald gripped. Arnold scoffed, clicking himself in as they took off from the streetlight and towards the school.

"Me? You're the one sending me flying into the dashboard for no reason." Arnold mumbled, laying back into the seat. Gerald sent him a glance before turning back to the road.

"It wasn't for no reason Arnold, man look at yourself! Your shirts on backwards, your eyes are all dopey looking- and you've been late for basketball practice all this week!" Gerald explained. He squinted his eyes, giving Arnold a stern look.

"You're not on drugs are you man?" Arnold laughed out, shaking his head in disbelief.

"Gerald you seriously think I'm on drugs because I've been late to a few basketball practices?" Arnold asked, unable to believe what he was hearing. Gerald hit the horn in anger before nodding his head intently.

"BASKETBALL ARNOLD! You've been late to basketball! That's unheard of man!" Gerald protested. Arnold laughed shaking his head before sighing. They were almost at the high school now. It would have been an easy enough walk had he had the motivation. After hearing Gerald's lecturing in the background he almost wished he had.

"Look I'm not on drugs Gerald, trust me- I'm just-happy." Arnold explained with a shrug of his shoulder. Gerald raised a brow as he pulled into the school's parking lot. The engine clicked off, leaving the two in silence.

"Alright I'll bite, why're you so happy?" Gerald asked opening up his door. Arnold smiled to himself, the memory brought back to the front of his mind. The way she smiled, the way she laughed- that cute little way she twirls her hair when she's nervous or how her eyes flutter when she's happy.

"Well…?" Gerald asked again. Resorting back to his droopy state Arnold laughed and opened up the front door to the school.

"Lila and I are going on a date." He answered, laughing to himself as if it couldn't be true. Although not as shocked and excited as Arnold had hoped he would be Gerald responded with a curious 'hm' and continued down the empty hallways toward the gym.

"You and Lila huh? When'd this happen?" Gerald asked lowly, knowing full well that Arnold wanted to talk about it. Arnold laughed some to himself, shrugging before continuing on with his statement.

"I don't know, I don't even know. One minute we were just sitting in class and then she laughed cause I said something so I laughed and that made her laugh more so I laughed cause she was laughing and-" Arnold could feel Gerald's cold glance and took his cue.

"Anyways, we started talking and I just- I asked her if she wanted to go to the movies on Saturday and she said yes- just like that!" Arnold whispered, afraid if he said it too loud someone would come and tell him that in fact wasn't true. Gerald clicked his tongue shaking his head.

"Man you have got it bad, how long have you been crushing on this girl again?" Gerald asked, looking down at the boy. Arnold shook his head, placing his things in the locker before quickly changing into his jersey.

"Look that doesn't matter, what matters is that she wants to go on a date with me- and that makes me happy." Arnold clarified. Gerald rolled his eyes, opening up the door to the gym's auditorium.

"Whatever you say man…"

The familiar opera of squeaking shoes against the gym floor fell upon their ears as they entered the gym's basketball court. Arnold could see the entire team lined up against the back of the gym, impatiently holding their gear.

"It looks like we're off the hook this time…" Gerald muttered, shooting Arnold one last angry glare before hustling toward the group. Arnold peeked over the team mates shoulders to see what the hold up could be. A familiar voice followed the sharp 'trill' of a coaches whistle.

"Come on, come on! Hustle damn it! We're never going to get the championships in this sorry state!" Helga screamed out blowing her whistle as loud as she could in frustration. Harold huffed, panting as sweat dripped down his face.

"Oh who are we kidding? We're not getting into the championships. We haven't won a single game!"

"That's because no one here knows how to make a decent shot!" Helga complained. One of the basketball players coughed rather loudly in irritation making Helga sigh heavily.

"I GET IT! Would it kill ya to give me a minute?" Helga yelped out, she did not get an actual response but merely a barrage of irritated stares. With one final sigh and a drop of her head she waved her hand toward the hockey team.

"Alright all you sissies, hit the showers!" Helga shouted, grabbing her own things off of the floor. The basketball team cheered, waving the boys off of the court. With a shake of her head she headed toward the team's removable goal, pushing it fairly easily toward the back of the gym.

"Wow Helga, I didn't know you were coaching the hockey team." Arnold called out, walking away from the crowd as they all started to put their things away. Helga jumped in surprise and turned on her heel, giving him the stink eye. He laughed a bit nervously but did not back away, nothing was going to ruin his good mood- not even Helga G. Pataki.

When he did not run in fear Helga sighed and answered.

"Yea well baseball seasons over and I don't really have much else to do so…" She shrugged heading towards the other goal. Arnold followed, determined to hold a conversation.

"I can see why they picked you to be their captain, you have a lot of leadership skills." Arnold complimented. Helga groaned, pushing at the second goal easily. Arnold moved beside her, pushing it with one hand as well. Helga glared- he did not remove it.

"The only reason I'm captain is cause I'm the only one around here who can score and they want to know how" Helga mumbled.

"I doubt that." Arnold said with a nod of his head. Helga growled. He felt his happiness start to slip as he held up his hands in defense.

"I meant I doubt that's the only reason, I'm sure you're a great shot." Arnold said quickly. Helga gave the goal one mighty push, sending it crashing into the gym's storage unit.

"As much as I'd like the wipe that stupid grin off your face Arnoldo I just don't have the energy so beat it won't ya!" Arnold felt a frown coming onto his face but fought it- Helga would not ruin his good mood!

"Fine..." he answered walking back toward the group. She shook her head before heading towards the locker room. The small conversation seemed to have sparked Gerald's interest for he piped in.

"I thought you guys placed ice hockey- what are you doing here in the gym?" Gerald asked. Helga mumbled crossing her arms.

"Those twinkle fairies rented out the rink for the whole week for their stupid ice ballet rehearsals, we had to practice somewhere." Helga stated. Arnold thought he could see a tint of embarrassment on Helga's cheeks as she wiped a large amount of sweat off of her face.

"Look, I stink like in a wet dog in a dump site, can I go take a shower now?" Helga asked, her voice having only the slightest undertone of self consciousness. Arnold looked around in confusion before turning back to her.

"I didn't know we had a second shower room in this gym." Arnold stated softly.

"We don't." Helga stated plainly.

There was a pause in the room before Arnold's face suddenly turned a dark red as her meaning dwelled upon him.

"S-so you shower with the boys?" He asked shakily. Helga raised a brow at his response and slowly nodded.

"Yea bucko you got a problem with that?"

"No-no, not if you don't I mean…but I mean- aren't you afraid they'll peek in on you?" Arnold asked, genuine concern in his voice. Helga's eyes softened for a moment as she opened her mouth to answer, but the roar of both the basketball and hockey team's laughter cut her off.

"Y-you're kidding right? Peek in on HELGA?" Harold asked, tears nearly leaking out of his eyes from the joke. Arnold looked back at them in confusion as Helga furrowed her brows together.

"Does THAT answer your question?" Helga asked motioning to the still chuckling men.

Arnold rubbed the back of his head before nodding gently. Helga gave one last groan before pushing her way angrily into the locker room. Arnold turned back to Gerald who was biting back a low laugh. Arnold punched his arm, his eyes showing a tint of actual anger.

"Hey man! What was that for?" Gerald asked, the last of his laugh fading into the gym. Arnold didn't answer but merely bent down and started to unpack his bag. It seemed that somehow Helga had in fact managed to ruin his good mood…


	2. The Indecent Proposal

Chapter Two: Indecent Proposal

"Crimeny it's cold…" Helga whispered to no one in particular as she sat outside of the school's gates. The wind roared around her, whipping her hair across her face. With a low groan she pushed it away, breathing into her hands as the sun started to set across the horizon. It was getting late now, and the night's chill had started to settle across the city. Leaning her back against the bark of a nearby tree Helga closed her eyes, pulling the hood of her sweatshirt over her head.

This was just her luck wasn't it?

The one day that her car had broken down, just one day that she had asked a favor of Miriam, and here she was sitting and waiting for a car that would never come. And of course she didn't have her cell phone on her to ask for a ride from someone else- that would just be ridiculous.

A quick shiver ran down her spine as the wind broke through her coat and onto her exposed skin. She quivered rubbing at the goose bumps before curling into a ball like state. With a low scowl she quickly pulled at her hoods strings, tightening the hole over her face. At least everyone had gone home and there was no one to see her in such an embarrassing state.

"Helga…?" A soft voice called from behind her.

But of course…

Helga didn't answer, hoping that her lack of attention would detour him away from the curled up woman. She knew it wouldn't. Through her small peep hole she could see Arnold walking towards her, his bag lazily thrown over his shoulder as he sat on his toes.

"What are you still doing on campus? Didn't practice end like, four hours ago?" Arnold asked in confusion. Knowing full well that he would not just drop the subject and secretly loving the small bit of attention Helga merely nodded and pulled her hood down and off of her face.

"Yep." Helga stated with a slight nod of her head. Arnold looked out into the parking lot, his eyes surveying over the nearly empty pavement. She guessed he was checking to see if her infamous pink jeep lay parked in its usual spot. When he had concluded she was not just sitting around because she felt like it he slowly put the pieces together.

"Oh." The words came out of his lips so softly and so sadly that Helga knew she did not have to give a word of explanation to the boy. She never had to…Arnold always understood, and for that she was thankful. Arnold sighed straightening his back before holding out a hand for Helga to take.

"Let's walk home together. I can give you a lift once we get to the boarding house." Arnold offered. Helga tried her best to stare at his hand with repulsion but the act quickly faded away. Reluctantly she placed her hand in his own and started to push herself up and off the ground.

Arnold leaned back, helping her up; she let out a small gasp as her thin frame nearly vaulted off of the sidewalk. Helga felt her breath catch in her throat- since when had Arnold become so strong? Arnold blushed, almost looking as confused as she had been. He looked over her small frame, a thought dawning on his pale face.

"You're lighter than I expected." Arnold whispered, almost to himself as he let go of Helga's hands. Helga rustled her fingers together, trying to regain her edge.

"Gee thanks. I'm glad I look like such a cow." Helga mumbled. She smirked, watching in pleasure as he lost his footing in the argument. He stumbled, whispering something about it being a compliment but she couldn't hear.

She loved the way that his face lit up in embarrassment when he was confronted, or how he'd blabber with his reasoning beside the fact that even an idiot could see he meant nothing of harm.

"Calm down I'm just kidding…" Helga clarified with a gentle smirk. "Let's get going."

She stuffed her hands in her pockets and headed down the street, not bothering to wait up for him. Arnold hopped to her side, the two traveling in quiet. It wasn't tense however, as it had been not but a few years before, nor angry, but peaceful…something she hadn't felt in quite some time. Her muscles relaxed, her eyes dazed, her entire guard down- it was something that happened naturally around this man- something that she couldn't control.

The more they were left alone together the more she started to feel that angry and bitter side of her fade away…

And it terrified her.

After elementary school the two seemed to have reached some sort of paranormal understanding of each other. Of course Helga would yell and call him names and at times he would glare at her with those eyes full of annoyance and frustration, but it was nothing compared to what it used to be.

Their fights were almost dull, their words no longer as sharp edged with loathing as they once had been. Perhaps it was because they never were in the first place. Perhaps both of them just got tired of pretending. Whatever it was it didn't mean they were friends, but it meant they were something- and that was good enough for her.

"That garden, it's beautiful isn't it…?" Arnold suddenly whispered. Helga looked up, her eyes catching sight of the newly renovated florist shop across the road.

Mrs. Vitello had recently expanded her shop and as some sort of customer attraction she had created a purely red rose garden in-between the two parts of her greenery. Long green vines twisted and turned, exploring the buildings with curiosity as beautiful flowers, dripping with a velvet red petals sat, always in beautiful bloom. In the middle of the garden sat a stone gazebo, a rose mosaic painted along the inner walls.

To most it was beautiful and romantic. To Helga, it was _perfect_…and she hated perfect.

"I hate roses…" Helga muttered sticking her hands in her pockets. Arnold looked from her to the garden before stepping up his pace to keep up with her. A small smile crossed his lips as he leaned forward over her shoulder.

"What so now you have an agenda against pretty flowers?" He asked. Helga twitched, her eyes staring back at him, uncomfortable with how close his lips seemed to be to hers. With a low breath she stared straight ahead, resolute not to get caught up in his games.

"You're really determined to just push all of my buttons today aren't you football head?" Helga muttered lowly under her breath. Arnold shook his head, moving from behind her to her side. He relaxed his shoulders, letting his arms hit against her own in their walk. Helga almost whimpered, trying to hide her embarrassment.

"Not really…just seeing those roses right now reminded me of why I was in such a good mood." Arnold announced happily. Helga rolled her eyes, giving out a small huff.

"Come to think of it you did seem to have that goofy idiot look on your face more than normal this past week." Helga mumbled. The zing completely flew by Arnold's head as he nodded, laughing lowly against to himself.

"Yea I suppose I have." Arnold said with an embarrassed nod. Helga gave a small grunt to show she was listening but did not say a word. Arnold looked at her, expecting some kind of comeback as he nudged his shoulder against her own.

"Aren't you going to ask why I'm so happy?" Arnold asked. Helga looked up at him, noting that she had to crank her head back much farther than she remembered.

"Nope." She stated plainly. Arnold looked forward, her blunt response not keeping him from sharing the good news. With a proud puff of his chest he leaned forward, wanting to shout the answer from the top of the highest hill in Hillwood.

"I am going out on a date with Lila Sawyer." Arnold announced. His eyes shot to Helga quickly, wanting to see each and every reaction on her face. Her face was well hidden by her sweatshirt as she stared down at the ground, collecting her thoughts.

Although he couldn't see her face he knew almost immediately he had upset her. It wasn't anything that she did or said, or even the way that her hands clenched into a fist. Something in the air changed, and just as quickly as it had come he felt it start to leave.

Had he said something wrong…?

"HAAAA!" Helga suddenly let out a roar of laughter. She threw her arms around her stomach before snorting, nodding to herself as the situation played out in her head.

"Hahaha…yea…. good luck with that." Helga laughed out, taking in a few breaths before chuckling out a few more times. Arnold knitted his brows together in frustration, not understanding for the second time that night what was so funny.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Arnold announced. His house had come into view now, just down the tip of the hill they were standing on. He stopped on the corner making Helga stop as well. She looked around, almost waiting for him to get the joke before laughing a bit more.

"I'm just saying you're not exactly a smoozer Arnold." Helga whispered.

"I don't need to be…it's one date with one girl…it's something personal" Arnold defended quickly. Helga nodded, scoffing under her breath.

"Right, because your last date with her went SO well." She stressed. Arnold's face flushed as he rubbed his foot into the dirt, recalling the unnatural amount of disasters he had almost nearly managed to avoid during elementary school. They weren't kids now though, things wouldn't happen that way again.

"I'll admit we had a few mishaps at the cheese festival but- that only made it more fun" Arnold whispered, trying to sound optimistic about the situation. Helga shook her head, letting out a small pitiful laugh as she waved her hand.

"Right and it was SO fun that she placed you in the friend zone- forever." Helga added with a nod. She started down the hill now and towards the house. Arnold however was not finished with this conversation. He rushed to her side.

"Oh, well what do you suggest I do Helga?" He asked snidely. Helga turned, for the first time very serious and almost sweet. Her eyes caught into his, making him freeze from whatever he might have said.

"Date me instead." Helga answered simply.

"W-what?" Arnold stuttered. She kept her gaze firm and unwavering as Arnold fidgeted nervously. Why was she looking at him like that? And why did it make him feel so-...guilty?

"Listen, Lila's too nice to tell you what a bad date you are- I'm not." Helga answered in the same almost emotionless tone. She wasn't kidding, she was serious about this. Arnold laughed shaking his head as they arrived at his patio step.

"What's gotten into you Helga…?" He laughed out nervously.

"You wouldn't have to date me for real" Helga clarified.

"But I'm guessing it's been a while since you've been out on a date…since you've kissed a girl…since you've had sex." She added testily. Arnold turned the darkest shade of red she'd ever seen him. Had she not been fighting so hard to keep calm she would have swooned at the sight.

"And you think I should…p-practice those things…w-with you?" Arnold asked, emphasizing each word as if she were speaking gibberish. Helga nodded, not really knowing what she was doing or why she was doing it. The words had come out so quickly she had no time to stop them, and now all she could do was hopelessly back peddle and hope he passed it off as some odd joke.

"It's not like it would be a romantic thing. I mean I obviously don't like you, and you obviously don't like me-"

"Obviously." Arnold interrupted. Helga ignored the sting in her heart as she continued.

"I'm just saying, you don't want to ruin things with 'the one' just because you were untrained-…romantically speaking." Helga answered with a shrug. Arnold placed his hand on the patio's stone handrail, still trying to determine whether or not she was joking.

"Come on, girl's don't put THAT much judgment into that kind of stuff…right?" Arnold asked, now not even sure himself. Helga rolled her shoulders in a 'don't look at me' sort of fashion before turning her back, ready to continue down the street.

"I don't know football head, girl's ride a lot on that first kiss- if you're sloppy there- well…" She trailed of as Arnold gulped. With how harshly he had been pining after Lila for all these years she could only imagine that he had not kissed anyone since-

Well since her…

"I'm just saying…I'm a pretty damn good teacher." Helga added with a small smirk. Arnold gulped, the red still not yet leaving his face.

"Heh…you-you've got some weird sense of humor Helga…I mean…you and me? I like you but- we can hardly stand to be friends let alone lovers- even if it's just for pretend. You know that. I-… I think I'll just take my chances on my own." Arnold whispered backing up and onto the stairs. Helga smiled sadly before nodding.

That's right. The idea of Helga Pataki and Arnold Shortman actually becoming a couple was completely ludicrous.

But the thought was nice while it lasted…

"You know what, I just remembered that Phoebe was going to meet some friends down the street, I'll just go catch a ride with her ok?" Helga answered nodding her head towards a nearby café. Arnold looked at it and then back at Helga. She was lying and they both knew it.

"Oh um…ok…I mean if you want, my offer still stands though…" Arnold reassured her. Helga smiled and nodded, readjusting her backpack on her shoulder.

"As does mine…if you happen to change your mind." She whispered. Helga giggled softly to herself as his cheeks tinted again. With a lazy wave of her hand she headed down the street.

"See you football head." Helga called out.

"Bye Helga…" Arnold whispered. He took in a deep breath, pushing the cold air up onto his face in an attempt to calm the blush on his cheeks. He headed inside of the boarding house, going over the words that Helga had so sincerely muttered. Even if this wasn't some weird joke, why on Earth would she offer? It wasn't like she had anything to gain.

…Right?


	3. The Date?

The Date?

Eight o clock. Arnold watched anxiously at the clock as the seconds passed by, ticking with an almost mockingly slow pace. He closed his eyes quickly taking in long breaths. There was no need to be nervous after all. All he could do was try to ignore the irregularly loud pumping in his chest as the minutes passed by.

At eight thirty he and Lila Sawyer would be on a date, something that he had been waiting for pretty much his entire life. Perhaps that was an exaggeration…but it didn't feel like it. Arnold had felt this way ever since he was a child. Her gorgeous smile and kind eyes had hooked him right from the beginning. She was smart, and beautiful, and sweet.

She was perfect. She was perfect for him.

And though he repeated this to himself over and over again he couldn't help but feel that something was wrong. Every time he repeated it his stomach began to knot, as if trying to tell him that at some level he was lying.

But he wasn't lying, he really did lov-…like- Lila. And why shouldn't he? She was the envy of every girl in school and the fancy of every boy, and here he was, about to go and spend a romantic evening with her. So why did Helga's offer plague his thoughts?

"_Date me instead."_

Her face flashed past his mind as he stared into the mirror, adjusting the sleeve of his shirt nervously. Helga had always been an odd girl ever since he first met her; she had been mean, and kind. She had belittled and comforted him, often in the same sentence. Though he never understood why Arnold seemed to be the only one who could see her for what she really was- a broken and fragile girl with no one to rely on.

He wanted to mend her…to pick up all the broken pieces and help her place them back together. So it was easy to explain why he felt so defensive whenever someone spoke badly of her, or why he would unconsciously smile when he saw her laugh.

He was her friend, and her only protector - but that was it.

Wasn't it…?

Arnold shook his head quickly, trying desperately to shake out the doubt in his mind. Where that small voice kept coming from was beyond him. Of course that was it! He loved Helga yes, but not in a romantic way. She was someone he wanted to keep safe and happy, not someone he wanted to date or spend the rest of his life with.

"Hey Arnold, grandma wants to know if you're ready for din- ohho well don't you look spiffy!" Phil announced as he entered the room. Arnold jumped, turning his back to the mirror as he grabbed onto his chest. With a blush of embarrassment he cast his eyes away from his grandfather and nodded.

"Do I…?" He asked lowly. Phil merely smiled and gave a large nod of encouragement.

"Yep! You got a big date tonight kiddo?" Phil asked, taking a hold of the navy blue tie that lay around his neck. Arnold blushed as his grandfather undid the knot and started to retie it. Arnold was never very good at these things.

"Actually I do…" He answered lowly. Phil smiled with a nod of his head.

"With who?" He asked, something in his voice giving away that he already knew the answer. Arnold looked up through his glass ceiling and at the stars trying to hide the goofy smile that came across his face every time he thought of her.

"Lila…" He whispered dreamily. Phil looked surprised at that, almost choking the poor boy as his hand tightened the tie. Arnold coughed to get his breath back as Phil quickly loosened it.

"Oh- is that so?" Phil asked, almost waiting for clarification. Arnold nodded quickly as his grandpa let go.

"Well yea, who else would it be?" Arnold asked with a gentle smirk. Phil shrugged quickly looking away from the boy's prying eyes. Arnold could see that the old man was holding back his real answer; Arnold leaned forward, opening his lips to ask again. His grandfather cut him off however.

"So what is this thing anyways Shortman?" Phil asked, staring down at the cactus which he had placed down upon Arnold's desk. Arnold looked at what his grandfather was studying so intently at before moving to his side.

"Huh…? Oh, it's called Echinocereus Poselgeri, I'm studying its blooming cycle under stressed conditions as a part of my science experiment." Arnold explained taking the glass covering off of it. His grandfather squinted up his eyes, taking a good and hard look at it before standing back up.

"It's kind of an ugly thing isn't it." He announced. Arnold laughed lowly before taking another look at it himself. The plant was by no means beautiful, chubby and covered with menacing needles it looked more like a weapon than a flower.

"Well it's not perfect no…" Arnold said with a hint of annoyance in his voice, after all, this was _his_ plant.

"But its blooms are extraordinary, I'll have to show you when it comes into season." Arnold explained, placing the glass covering back over it. Phil nodded, not seeming that interested now that Arnold's mind was off of his original question.

"Alright, well I'd better go help grandma make dinner, you know how she has a tendency to make things unedible…have fun on your big date though." Phil answered, giving Arnold's hair a gentle rub. Arnold nodded quickly, watching as his grandfather disappeared from view. Almost afraid to see what time it had actually become Arnold turned to the clock.

Eight twenty?

"Damn it!" Arnold yelled leaping towards the door. His first date in five years and he was going to be late to it! How could things get any worse? Almost instantly he regretted thinking such a thought, as just as he got outside of the boarding house's door, thunder rolled throughout the sky.

In only a moment rain poured down, as hard and strong as a winter storm. With a low groan Arnold threw his hand over his head and ran towards the garage. With a swift amount of talent he crawled through the boarder's storage and into his grandfather's car. It was obvious it hadn't been used for quite some time as the doors had been pinned by baby pictures of Oskar.

Being born unnaturally limber Arnold managed to climb up the boxes and in through the car's window. With a breath of relief he threw the key into the ignition and rolled the car out of the garage. Arnold heard the familiar whirring of gears turning behind him and looked up only to see the roof of the car jerking backwards.

"Oh you've got to be kidding me…" Arnold muttered, frantically hitting the roof mechanism with his finger. Once locked into its convertible position no amount of yelling or curses could return it up. With a low mumble Arnold took off his suit jacket and laid it over his head, frantically trying to keep himself from getting soaked in the downpour.

This was fine- just a little distraction from tonight- perhaps she would find it charming.

Oh lord please let her find it charming…

Arnold quickly put on his seatbelt, readjusting the jacket atop his head to cover more of his body. When he was sure that he was ready he pulled out of the driveway and into the street, his heart still thumping loudly while he shifted gears. He couldn't help but let his mind wander as the rain pitter pattered against the metal hood.

Maybe Helga was right…

On one hand it had been a LONG time since he'd been out with a woman- far too long. He had no real romantic expertise accept for what he'd seen in movies or read in books and while romantically naïve he wasn't that stupid as to rely on them.

His grandmother had always told him that for two people to be compatible they had to match each other on an emotional AND physical level. If Lila felt like he wasn't up to par maybe she would think twice about seeing him as more than a friend.

Arnold laughed nervously, gripping at the steering wheel tightly before shaking his head. No, Lila wouldn't think that way. She was far too sweet, far too innocent to place such heavy importance on the physical. He dug his nails into the steering wheel before nodding.

Maybe he should pick her up some flowers first…

Just in case.

Arnold quickly turned on his blinker, taking a next right at the stop sign just before Lila's home. He glanced down at the clock, it was eight thirty two, if he hurried maybe she wouldn't notice that he was late, and if she did-

Well…he'd at least have flowers.

Main street wasn't too far from where he was, if he was able to make it before closing time he shouldn't have any trouble getting in and out. With a skid Arnold pulled in front of the flower shop and hustled inside, carefully avoiding the dripping gutter above his head. The bell from the door rang above him as Arnold shook out his jacket across the floor, pathetically trying to dry it before anyone noticed.

"Mrs. Vitello…?" Arnold called out, looking across the aisles of flowers for the elderly woman. At the sound of his voice Mrs. Vitello poked her head out from the back room.

"Oh my, Arnold is that you?" She asked gently. Arnold nodded giving her a small wave, his foot tapping against the tile floor rather impatiently. She smiled heartily, taking her cane from her desk and slowly walking herself over to him.

"Look how grown up you are- …and how wet." Mrs. Vitello commented her eyes looking over the soaked boy. Arnold nodded quickly, trying desperately to keep from seeming rude, however he didn't exactly have time to catch up and talk.

"I was actually on a way to a date, I'm late- I was wondering if you could help me out with making it up to her." Arnold pleaded with a shy smile. Mrs. Vitello laughed heaving heard it all before. She hobbled to the cashier bringing out different colored wrapping papers.

"Of course Arnold…what kind of flowers does she like?" She asked gently. Arnold blinked for a moment, unsure of how to answer that question. In truth he had no idea what kind of flowers she liked or disliked. Oh god what if she was allergic to pollen?

Arnold shook his head quickly, it was too late to turn back now. Seeing his hesitation Mrs. Vitello merely nodded and reached behind her into a glass fridge where all the pre-made bouquets were held. Arnold shot her a thankful look as she handed him a beautiful array of roses and babies breath.

"Here, some freshly picked American Beauties from my garden, any woman would love these." Mrs. Vitello commented as he fished around in his pockets for some money to give her. She quickly shook her head, holding out her hands to keep him from handing her anything.

"This one is free Arnold, as a token of good luck with this lady of yours." She whispered with a happy smile. Arnold grinned before nodding, whispering several thank you's under his breath as he placed his jacket back over his head, keeping one end out to keep the flowers covered as well.

"Well…wish me luck…" He whispered taking a step out the door. Still focused on keeping the jacket steady and the flowers dry from the down pouring rain Arnold had completely forgotten about the gutter that emptied directly above her doorway. With a loud gasp Arnold felt the water fall completely off the back of his jacket and onto his head. The gutter water trickled down his back, soaking his shirt as he groaned.

This couldn't be happening…

"…you should probably take these too…" Mrs. Vitello said as a second thought. Arnold looked back as she pulled out a box of chocolates from the fridge. She walked over, wiping at his hair with her apron as she offered him the heart shaped token. He took them gladly before nodding his head to her. With a few gentle wipes he could feel his hair starting to dry, although nothing could be done about his shirt.

"I don't know how to thank you Mrs. Vitello." He whispered. She smiled softly and patted his hand with her own wrinkled palm.

"Think nothing of it, if you really want to repay me you can find out what flowers she likes…okay?" She answered. Arnold nodded, shivering from the ice cold water against his skin before hopping into the car. Ready or not he was going through with this date. Nay, he would _slay _this date! Slay it like a dragon, an evil evil date spoiling dragon!

Newly motivated Arnold slammed his foot down on the acceleration, racing towards that small green apartment that held his dream girl. Nearly missing the turn Arnold swerved onto her street, his heart racing faster and faster as he got closer. However this time it wasn't because he was nervous, or embarrassed- but because he was happy.

This was really happening.

Unable to wipe the smile off of his face Arnold threw the car into park and ran up towards her door. With one last breath he knocked on the door. He could hear her small footsteps even from outside of the house. Lila opened the door, looking rather surprised to be seeing him there.

"Arnold?" Lila asked, tilting her head gently.

"I know, I know, I'm late, I'm sorry it's just I got so swamped at home and then the car wouldn't raise the roof back up and-" Arnold started to ramble, trying desperately to apologize. He went to hold out the flowers but quickly realized he had left them in the car. He turned back to get them when he heard Lila speaking again.

"Oh no, Arnold it's ok, I was just getting in the car myself…I was just ever so surprised, I thought I was just going to meet you at the theatre." Lila clarified. Arnold looked back over at her, glad that she wasn't angry for him being late. With a shy smile he rubbed the back of his still soaked head.

"Well that wouldn't be very gentlemanly of me now would it?" He asked. Lila looked around, not sure if the question was directed at herself or not.

"Well I suppose not…but Arnold your house is all the way across town, you didn't have to come all this way just to come and pick me up." Lila explained, feeling a bit pressured as he stared back up at her.

"No no it's not trouble- I mean- I wanted to." He whispered. Lila twisted her face up in confusion before slowly nodding. Seeing the rain outside Lila stood on her tip toes to grab her coat. When it was securely wrapped around her shoulders she bent down, helping her feet into their mary-janes.

"Well alright if you insist…are we picking up Gerald on the way there too?" Lila asked, looking up from her current position. Arnold stared down upon her, his grin still stuck on his face.

"Gerald? Why would we do that….?" Arnold asked. Lila stood up straight, buttoning up the jacket as she laughed softly under her breath.

"Well you came all the way out here to pick me up, I just assumed we were doing the rest for whoever else is coming." Lila answered bluntly. Arnold's face drained of all color as he stuttered to find an answer. Lila looked past him and noticed the roses and candy in the back of his car; she smiled giggling gently before pointing them out.

"Oh Arnold, are you bringing someone special along tonight?" Lila teased. Arnold stood dumbfounded, unable to answer. She had thought this was some sort of group outing…the thought that he might have been asking her out romantically hadn't even crossed her mind.

It hadn't even phased her.

"Arnold you don't look so well, perhaps you should lie down…" Lila whispered placing her hand upon his forehead. Arnold closed his eyes tightly, his chest taking in deep and saddened breaths. Taking her hand in his own he slowly took it off of his head and back down to her side.

"Y-yea, you know for some reason I'm not feeling all too well…" Arnold confessed. Lila nodded leaning against her doorway.

"Ok…maybe a rain check then?" She asked kindly. Arnold forced a weak smile and nodded.

"Y-yea…maybe some other time." Arnold whispered. Lila opened the door for him, squeezing onto his hand reassuringly as she motioned her head towards the kitchen.

"I have some hot tea brewing, do you want to come and have a cup until you feel better?" Lila asked kindly. Arnold shook his head, gulping a bit as he held onto his stomach. He felt like he'd just been punched. He could feel his head getting dizzy as he backed down off of her porch.

"Uh-…no, no I think I'm just going to head home." Arnold whispered. Lila looked at him a bit sadly, his hand slipping from her own as he continued to back away.

"Are you sure?" She asked. "It's no trouble."

"Yea…yea I'm sure, uh, sorry Lila…" Arnold answered turning so that he wouldn't have to look at her face any longer. That wasn't the face of a woman in love…that was the face of a woman in a comfortable and safe friendship. That wasn't a bad thing he guessed, but it wasn't the face he wanted either.

"I'll see you at school then. Please do try and feel better Arnold." Lila called as he got into his car. Arnold nodded absent mindedly, starting it back up. Lila gave him one last wave before closing the door to her home. Arnold stared in front of him blankly for a moment, not understanding what had just happened.

He didn't remember driving down the street, nor the next, or even stopping a few blocks later. He did however remember where he was, and why he was there. Slamming the door behind him Arnold walked up the familiar patio and to the door, his body dripping with the storms heavy rain. He knocked against the door, shivering as he waited for it to open.

As it cracked open his face shifted into that of a man with determination. He kept his hands sharp at his sides as the pigtailed girl blinked at him in confusion.

"…Arnold? What do you want?" Helga asked as she held open the door.

"I want you to teach me!"


	4. The Three Step Plan

The Three Step Plan

"…and you said yes?"

Helga whimpered covering her face in embarrassment and shame as her best friend sat cross legged on her bright pink covers. Refined with a mature face far beyond her years Phoebe pushed her silken black hair behind her ears, the navy blue eyes taking in the information as she pushed up her glasses. Helga turned to her, hoping for an answer of some sort as Phoebe placed her hand to her lips, deep in thought.

The sun shined through Helga's window, playing against her hair as Phoebe sighed, glancing up at her best friend. Helga gulped, knowing full well what Phoebe was thinking. She held up her hands, shaking her head quickly as she tried to explain.

"I don't know how it happened Phoebes, I said something stupid, I know, but now he actually expects me to go through with it, I really need your help." Helga explained, her eyes softening in pleading as Phoebe sighed.

"You KNOW what you need to do Helga. You need to go down to Arnold's house and tell him this was all a misunderstanding. You need to cut it off before you get yourself in even more trouble." Phoebe announced. They stared at one another for a while, Helga, knowing that Phoebe was right, and Phoebe, knowing that Helga would never give up the chance.

"…I know…I know but-" Helga held out her arms, desperate for the girl to understand. Phoebe sighed a bit heavier.

"You're going to regret this…" Phoebe added, giving the girl a warning glance. Helga nodded quickly, throwing her hands down onto the bed in excitement. Although Phoebe was right and this would probably end horribly Helga couldn't help but be excited. If she could pull this off, if she could really play the part well enough, her lips would be on Arnolds in no time!

"So what's the plan?" Phoebe asked, her voice much calm than before. She blinked at Helga, waiting for an answer as Helga laughed softly.

"What plan?" She asked. Phoebe tilted her head.

"You know…what you two are going to do…how you're going to go about it? Why you're doing it in the first place? That plan…?" Phoebe whispered.

"Well it's obvious isn't it?" Helga asked, taking a bite of a chocolate bar that sat on her desk. Phoebe shook her head, showing that she did not understand as Helga leaned back in her chair, making the top legs rise up.

"Arnold already came to me so he's just going to have to trust whatever I say. I feed him some bad advise, get him to make some fatal mistakes and on his next date with Lila it's 'bye bye' miss perfect." Helga answered with a broad smile. Phoebe blinked for a moment, waiting for the rest but it never came.

"…what?" She asked slowly. Phoebe coughed into her hand before shaking her head.

"Oh it's nothing, it's just- Arnold's going to find out right away that you were lying." Phoebe answered. Helga nodded, not seeing the problem.

"So?" She asked.

"Well, he's never going to trust you again…he'll certainly not think of you as a friend anymore." Phoebe whispered.

"And that's if he doesn't even bother to look into WHY you'd lie to him…" Phoebe answered with a gentle shuffle of her shoulders. Helga's eyes widened as Phoebe continued.

"After all, you were the one who offered, and you were the one who INSIST that you don't have any feelings for him. So why would you even bother to make such an elaborate prank just to ruin a relationship you shouldn't have any qualms with in the first place."

Helga twisted her face, understanding for the first time that this would require some actual thought. Arnold was expecting her to 'teach him' after all, and although Helga was well versed in many things, but romance was not one of them.

If she had been maybe she wouldn't be in this situation.

She didn't know anything about feelings or how to trick other people into love- that was in fact something she had struggled with almost her entire life. From her family to Arnold- she had no idea how to face something when it actually mattered. She had no idea how to talk to someone on a deep level of truth-

But she did know how to fake it. She was an excellent actress…

"So…I should really try to help him get together with Lila?" Helga asked, a gentle squeak in her voice. Phoebe shook her head.

"I don't know…have you already set a date with him?" Phoebe asked, the curiosity evident in her voice. Helga shook her head. Everything had happened so fast last night she wasn't even sure it was real until she smelled his cologne on her front porch.

"Then I guess you have until then to work things out. I guess the main question is whether you want to remain friends with Arnold, or keep him from being in a possibly serious relationship." Phoebe whispered, standing up and off the bed. Helga watched her go as she took her small bag in her hands.

"I'm really sorry but I'm running completely late for my flight…we'll talk about this later?" Phoebe asked, taking the door handle in her hands. Helga nodded, still dumbfounded.

"OH that's right…Harvard's flying you out to see the campus huh…" Helga whispered. Although they were only seniors from a second rate school colleges had been fighting neck and tooth to get Phoebe into their academic programs. This month it was Harvard with a weeklong vacation- full expense paid of course. Phoebe smiled and reached down, taking the girl in her small arms.

"Don't worry Helga, it'll all work out. Just be honest." Phoebe whispered. Helga rolled her eyes.

Honest.

Right.

"You can reach me on my cell phone anytime if something comes up." Phoebe quickly answered. Helga gave an annoyed nod, pushing the girl out of the door.

"Come on Phoebe, I can handle myself, I'm not ten anymore." Helga answered. Phoebe stared at her for a moment, not sure if she should reply to the offhanded comment or not. Helga narrowed her eyes, making her decision clear.

"Ok ok! But I'll be back in just a week." Phoebe said quickly. Helga nodded, pushing the girl out the door with a friendly smile.

"I know Phoebes. Don't worry so much…what could go wrong in one week?" Helga asked with a gentle laugh. Oh why did she say that…oh why oh why did she say that? Phoebe laughed nervously, gently stepping out of the door as she nodded.

"You're right…I'm sure it will be fine." Phoebe stated one last time before heading down the stairs and out of the house. Helga waved to her as she disappeared, her eyes closing in exhaustion. They hadn't even started this thing yet and she was already bone dead tired.

I guess there was just one last thing she needed to do.

"Helga? What are you doing here?" Arnold stood open mouthed as Helga stood on his porch, her arms crossed and her eyes determined. She seemed to be trying far too hard to hide anything that wasn't 'neutral' as she stepped inside of the house.

"Why do you think football head?" Helga asked, falling down onto his couch in a lazy stupor. Arnold turned a deep shade of red as he quickly looked around in each direction, checking to make sure that no one had heard her. He walked in closer.

"Oh…you mean you're here about…that?" He asked testily. Helga raised a brow before nodding slowly.

"Uh doi…jeez calm down would you football head, it's not like we're gonna do anything right now." Arnold immediately relaxed, feeling silly for even thinking that she was going to be so bold. Now embarrassed at his own actions Arnold rubbed the back of his head nervously.

"So uh…what did you need Helga?" Arnold asked softly.

"Well I figured if we're going to be fake dating we're going to need real rules." Helga announced, putting her feet up and onto the table. Arnold sank down into the armchair next to her, raising a brow.

"Rules?" He asked with a tilt of his head. Helga nodded, keeping a stiff upper lip as she crossed one leg over the other. With her arms tightly crossed she continued.

"Rule number one- when we're out in public you will have to wear a disguise and use a fake name. I don't want everyone around school thinking that we're together and I'm sure you don't want Lila finding out either." Helga stated. Arnold blinked for a moment before slowing nodding.

"…Alright…but you do too. Have to have a disguise I mean…I'll feel silly if I'm the only one." Arnold stated. Helga looked at him for a moment before sighing, giving a slight nod. That was a fair trade. It would be safer that way too. If both of them were unrecognizable then it was even less likely someone would come by to say hello or check out the other's 'date'.

"Fine…then we'll need fake identities. It needs to be something simple, something that we'll easily remember and can recognize, like small alterations to our own names." Helga reasoned. Arnold nodded.

"What about Arnie and Hilda? That's pretty simple." Arnold reasoned, remembering the blonde haired girl from his dream all those years ago. Helga nodded, tapping her chin as she looked up at the ceiling.

"That's fine, I doubt we'll be using them a lot anyways." Helga whispered . She coughed, clearing her throat as she continued, keeping her eyes away from his own.

"Rule number two- We will go on a date like a normal couple and at the end of each session I will grade you depending on how well you got all of the details. I will teach you how to woo little miss goodie two shoes, but I am in no sense of the word going to be playing her on our dates. If I tell you that you should bring your date her favorite flower, you should not bring me HER favorite, but my favorite. " Helga added with a snip.

"Of course this is a two way street…the better you do on the date the more information I'll give you on Lila. After all, I can imagine trying to learn intimate details about two women at the same time could be a bit of an overload." Helga whispered. The room fell silent as Helga played with her fingers.

"And the third and last rule…is you can stop me at anytime." Helga whispered, looking up seriously as Arnold blinked for a moment. She stood, slowly walking over to him as she continued to talk.

"You asked me to help you, and that's what I intend to do- no jokes, no walls, just blunt honesty. If I offend you I won't apologize, and if I make you feel uncomfortable I won't stop- unless you tell me to. I intend to teach you everything I know, and when that moment comes that you feel like you're doing something 'wrong' you need to let me know. Because I won't hold back." Helga whispered, placing both of her knees on either side of his legs. She sat down on his lap, her eyes not breaking his own as she moved her arms to brace herself against the chair.

"…do you understand?" She breathed.

"…y-…yes." Arnold stuttered. She smiled and patted his cheek quickly.

"Good. Then I'll meet you in park central tomorrow- five o clock…don't be late." She whispered, lifting herself up and off the chair. Arnold watched with a flushed face as she strutted to his home's door.

"See you later football head."


	5. The Investigation

The Investigation 

"That's great girls! Let's try it one more time from the top!" A chipper voice echoed out through ice rink as she floated gracefully across the rink's ice covering. With a gentle twirl she skated back into position, holding her hands above her head in the starting position. She closed her eyes, freeing her body of any tension as the song's beats whispered throughout her ears. Her body moved on its own, twisting this way and that as her partner's manipulated her limbs.

Lila fell limp; falling back into her partner's arms as she nearly threw her to the other side of the rink. With controlled limpness she twirled, a blur against the ice. Three of the girls followed after her while the rest mirrored on the other side.

She could hear the auditorium door open but tried to remain focus- one little slip- one twitched limb and she could hurt herself dramatically, after all, the edges of her ice skates were incredibly sharp. Lila cracked an eye open, watching as a pig tailed girl sat on one of the bleachers.

"Uh- h-hold on girls…let's take a break alright?" Lila called out, clapping her hands for everyone's attention. They quickly looked from her to each other, obviously not wanting to stop in the middle of the routine. With small mumbles they agreed and wiped their brows, heading towards the bleacher.

"Helga…?" Lila called out, moving to where the shadowed girl lie. Helga sighed, not knowing why exactly it was that she was here. Well…that was a lie. Lila and Helga had never really 'gotten along' and because of this she didn't exactly know a lot about the red headed girl. So when she had promised Arnold inside information on how to get her to like him, she didn't fully grasp the weight of her words.

"Hiiiii…Lila…" Helga mumbled getting off of her seat. With a slight sigh she made room for the skinny girl as she sat down beside her. Lila giggled happily, wrapping her arms happily around Helga as she patted her back.

"Helga! What a wonderful surprise. What brings you here?" Lila asked with a bright smile. Helga struggled to answer that. Forcing a smile she patted back down on the bleacher for the girl to sit. With a bit of a struggle Lila propped her skates up on the bleacher below and sat down to listen to the girl.

"You know that the qualifiers are coming up right?" Helga asked. Lila nodded to be polite, though Helga doubted she understood a word she was saying.

"Well gym floors are no match for an ice rink, we're not a good team in any normal circumstances but we're a horrible one if we don't have any practice." Helga explained. She leaned back against her seat lazily, her eyes glazing over as she rambled.

"This is really important to me and them, and I know that you have the rink rented out for the next two weeks, but I figured we could talk something out over coffee. I'll buy?" Helga asked with a tilt of her head. Lila placed a finger to her lips, thinking for a moment as she nodded happily.

"I'm not opposed to that at all Helga! I'll make you a copy of the rehearsal schedule and we can talk it over after practice. Does that sound alright?" Lila asked happily. Helga nodded, standing up and grabbing her bag.

"That's fine. " Helga mumbled stretching out her arms. Lila smiled happily, nodding in excitement as she stumbled to stand back up. Helga reached down, pulling her up rather easily as Lila laughed in embarrassment.

"So I'll see you in an hour?" Lila asked joyfully. Helga sighed, rubbing the back of her head.

For Arnold, she told herself.

"Yea sure, there's a café down the street, I'll just meet you over there." Helga added with a nod. Lila beamed, quickly heading back down to the rink where the girls had started to gather. Helga sighed, rubbing her head lowly as she took in a deep breath.

What on earth had she gotten herself into…?

"Oh Helga I'm ever so sorry that I'm late!" Lila breathed out, running into the café's doors. Helga sat with her laptop, lazily looking up as the girl struggled for her breath. She looked around, shrugging as she closed the laptop and stood up.

"Uh…it's ok." Helga answered placing the laptop back into her backpack, heading over to the café's counter. Lila followed in suite, moving her skates uncomfortably on her shoulder with one last breath. Helga turned back to her, reaching for her wallet.

"Watcha want princess?" Helga asked pulling out her card. Lila shook her head quickly, holding up her hands as she tried to push the wallet back into Helga's pocket.

"Oh Helga, you don't have to do that, I don't need you to get me anything-"

Helga sighed placing her hand over the girl's mouth. Lila squeaked as Helga stared at her in annoyance. Helga nodded slowly as she talked.

"You like chocolate princess? How about a mocha?" Lila blushed, gently pressing Helga's hand down as she nodded.

"Uh…yea…white though- I- I can't have normal chocolate, I'm allergic." Lila answered with a small nod. Helga gave the barista a glance before nodding her head.

"Well you heard her order, get it ready would ya?" Helga asked putting the money down onto the table. So, little miss perfect can't have chocolate huh? That was good to know. After getting her change the two often headed toward a small booth near the window. Helga grabbed her own coffee from the table she was at previously before sitting down.

"U-uh, so, I have the rehearsal schedule right here." Lila called out perkily, pulling out a blue packet from her knapsack. She passed it to Helga who took a long sip as she looked it over. For the next two weeks the entire rink had been rented out by Lila's troupe. This week was all dress rehearsals, the next, performances. The times seemed fairly crunched, but she could make something work.

It would be good for Arnold to know when she was busy too.

"Alright, well obviously weekend practices are no good- the qualifiers are this Saturday, if we want to have any hope of placing in the finals it will need to be on a weekday..." Helga mused, biting her lip as she looked at the times. The girls started at 5 and went until 11, not nearly enough time to get out of school and practice, and just late enough where she couldn't get the whole team.

"Is there any way you can start the rehearsals an hour later?" Helga asked lowly. Lila slowly shook her head.

"Nn…no I don't think so. We have to set up the set and that takes a long time, especially seeing as how we only have a few girls who can actually move the set pieces." Lila added with a gentle nod. Helga groaned, resting her head onto her wrist.

"What if we set them up for you? AFTER we finish OUR practice?" Helga asked lowly. Lila blinked, her face lighting up as the thought dawned on her.

"Yea, that would be great actually, if you're willing I mean." Lila giggled out. Helga nodded, placing the blue packet into her backpack as she looked outside of the window. Lila and Helga were by no means close, but the tension and awkwardness of their younger years had faded away with time. Even the thought of Lila attempting to steal away her Arnold didn't bring nearly as much anger and torment as it might have before.

Perhaps it was because, in some small part of her heart, she knew if Arnold had to be with anyone other than herself…Lila wasn't such a bad choice.

She wasn't a good one by any means- but not a horrible one either. Helga took a long sip of her coffee, closing her eyes in relaxation as the world passed by around them. A waiter came by, placing Lila's own mug down upon the table before excusing himself. Lila smiled thanking him as she took a gentle sip, giggling as the froth hit her upper lip.

Helga watched in interest as Lila blushed, wiping it away quickly. Helga merely leaned back into the booth, grabbing a nearby magazine as Lila struggled to find conversation.

"So Helga, it's been a while since we've talked…how are you?" Lila asked, resting her head on her hands. Helga shrugged, flipping through the pink pages in a rather bored manner as she kicked her feet up and onto the table.

"Same old same old." Helga answered, her eyes suddenly shooting wide as a large and rather unnatural grin crossed her face. She threw one leg over the other, pursing her lips as she placed the magazine down onto the table quickly.

"Hey look at this, it's one of those stupid dating quizzes. That sounds like fun, we should take it together!" Helga called out with fake enthusiasm. Lila blinked, taking another small sip as she raised a brow.

"Um…if you want to Helga…that never seemed to be your type of thing though." Lila whispered. Helga laughed out, tapping her stomach as she shook her head.

"No it'll be fun, girl talk- you know!" Helga answered quickly, pulling the magazine quickly back up to her face. Lila nodded slowly, not seeming to understand the quick interest, but not rude enough to stop her. Helga smiled, giggling softly as she strolled down the questions.

"Alright, first, your date calls you up to see what you want to do- what do you say?" Helga asked lowly. Lila took another sip, her eyes lifting as she thought.

"Oh I don't know, whatever he wanted to do was fine I suppose." Lila answered with a shrug. Helga groaned not even glancing down at the magazine as she answered.

"That's not a choice, choose again." Helga mumbled.

"Oh…well…I…I'm not sure…something intimate I suppose…something closed off with room to talk…a small dinner, a trip to the café, a walk in the park…somewhere without too much distraction, something simple and quiet." Lila whispered with a gentle smile. Helga nodded, recording her answer into her mind.

"So the movies would be a bad idea then? Or an amusement park?" Helga asked. Lila nodded.

"Those things are fun too- but for a first date I'd really like someplace without a lot of people." Lila answered simply.

"Mmk…your date decides to bring you a gift- flowers and a small token. What would you be ecstatic to receive?" Helga asked slowly. Lila blushed softly, giggling under her breath. This was all so silly to her, and Helga could understand why.

"Um…I love yellow roses…I think they're absolutely gorgeous...as far a gift I can't really say, something like jewelry or anything fancy I think I'd feel too awkward to accept…just something small, something personal." Lila whispered.

Helga flipped through the questions, searching for something a bit more relevant to the information she needed. Arnold didn't care what kind of dress she would be wearing or what food she would order-

But this-…

"…Assuming the first three dates has gone wonderfully, where do you and your newly found lover stand-…physically?" Helga asked, slowly and surely, pronouncing each of the words as she watched Lila's face light up with embarrassment.

"Haha- oh, that's a hard question. I suppose it depends if I'm still a-….a…" Lila stuttered for her words, obviously not meaning to give up as much as she had. Helga smirked, placing the magazine down as she grabbed her bag. So little miss perfect was still a virgin-

Good. This would give her time.

"Welp, I really should get going." Helga answered taking the last sip of coffee from her mug and placing it back down on the table. Lila stood, sadness crossing her face as Helga made her way to the door.

"Oh…do you really have to leave so soon?" She asked, almost pleading for the young woman to come back. Helga guessed she didn't get out very often, especially not with female counterparts. Helga smiled uneasily but waved politely.

"Yea, I've still got a lot of planning to do before our big game. Thanks for the rink though, it'll help a lot. I'll be sure to have the guys leave it nice and clean for you froo-froo girls." Helga muttered opening up the café door. Lila sighed before nodding.

"You should come see us perform- we're actually very good." Lila explained. Helga shrugged closing the door quickly before muttering.

"I'll think about it…"


	6. The First Date

The First Date

"Calm down old girl…he'll be here…of course he'll be here, he wouldn't cross me- he knows what will happen if he crosses me."

Helga found herself muttering to no one as she paced nervously up and down Main Street. Her fingers, calloused and worn from her misadventures in life, rubbed against her skin, anxiously awaiting his arrival. She felt bare and exposed standing here on her own. All she could see around her were happy couples, oblivious to the world around them- and that only hurt her more.

What was she doing here?

Helga sighed dropping down onto the park bench. This was ridiculous. Why couldn't she just be straight forward and tell Arnold how she really felt? Why couldn't she just tell him that she didn't WANT him to be with Lila, and that he should be with her instead? Why couldn't she just-

Helga sighed lowly, resting her head on her wrist. She knew why. She knew exactly why. She was a coward, and she had always been a coward. How on Earth was Arnold supposed to understand that she was the woman he was supposed to be with if she never even gave him a reason to like her in the first place? Sure he was able to see past most of her façade, but she wasn't helping by pushing him down every chance she got.

She wasn't helping by not being honest and showing him the good things about herself- not that she could honestly think of any at the moment…

Maybe it would be best if he didn't show up. When he chose Lila over her, and he would, she would just be crushed and in an even worse place than she had put herself in now. How long would she be able to keep up this charade that she knew what she was doing? How long would it be until he realized she was just as clueless as he was?

Helga groaned, slapping her cheeks quickly to pull herself out of her own mind. Now was not the time to be doubting herself or asking questions, he would be here any minute.

Besides…she was already knee deep, she would just have to accept the consequences whatever they may be. She would teach Arnold all that she knew, she would help him win Lila's heart, and if he happened to realize that she was the better woman along the way-

Well then…that was just a bonus.

"Helg-…I mean…Hilda…is that you?" Arnold called out from across the courtyard. Helga looked up from her bench, her eyes falling onto the young man of her affections. Dressed in a more form fitting shirt than usual her face blushed at the way it's striped features clung onto his body. His hair laid in spikes above his head, similar to how he wore it as a child, and a pair of bright red square glasses fell upon his framed face. Helga wiped her blush away, quickly standing.

"Oh…hey Arnie." She mumbled casually, although embarrassment gripped at most of her. Arnie looked her over in amazement, she had undergone a complete transformation from her usual wear, although, she still wore her signature color.

With a bright pink a cut wig and a short slit white skirt, Arnold could hardly even recognize her. Her body was usually hidden away under far too large t-shirts and baggy jeans, he didn't even know she had become a woman until now. Her chest had completely filled out, and although she lacked the curves of Rhonda or Lila, her lankiness was beautiful in its own strange way. He found himself staring at the way her legs curved into her soft pink heels before being pulled out of his thoughts by her biting voice.

"Your hair looks interesting." Helga stated, not quite able to force herself to admit how nice the style fit on him. Arnold looked up with a bright blush, groaning in embarrassment as he hid his head into his arms.

"It looks stupid doesn't it? I knew I should have kept it gelled up." Arnold mumbled rustling with his hair quickly. Helga shook her head quickly, grabbing onto his hands to keep him from harming it any farther.

"No…I like it…you look very handsome…besides, if anyone should be embarrassed it's me, I look ridiculous in this skirt." Helga pointed out tugging at the edges in a sort of curtsey. Arnold laughed at that before nodding in agreement.

"You kind of do"

"You want to say that again football head?" Helga mumbled holding up her fist to him. Arnold laughed shielding himself from her penetrating gaze.

"I didn't mean it like that, you look beautiful Helga sorry, I just…like you in your other clothes better is all…it's more-…you." Arnold explained with the shrug of his shoulders. Helga crossed her arms, a gentle blush tinting her cheeks as she tapped her foot.

"Yea whatever football head…so what are we doing today?" Helga asked lowly under her breath. Arnold blinked for a moment, pointing a lazy finger at himself.

"Was I supposed to plan it…?" Arnold asked lowly. Helga groaned, nodding quickly.

"I told you to plan the date like, two days ago Arno- Arnie…" Helga grumbled, obviously not happy with the situation. Arnold felt himself getting more and more nervous as he nodded. She did say that didn't she…?

Rubbing the back of his head he couldn't help but feel much more pressured than before. It hadn't even occurred to him that Helga might have been expecting an actual practice date- he thought she was just going to lead him as they went, not throw him to the sharks. Not that he should be surprised, Helga was never one to take things step by step.

"Jeez I'm sorry Helg-…Hilda, I must have forgotten. How can I make it up to you?" Arnold asked lowly. Helga sighed heavily, marking something in her purse as she nudged toward the center of downtown.

"Fifty points off football head…though I had a hunch something like this would happen…" Helga mumbled .She shivered, the air around them starting to get cold. It was spring, and while the weather man had predicted a warm afternoon rain clouds were already starting to form.

"Alright football head pay attention." Helga mumbled heading down the street.

"Lesson one, say you're on a blind date or you have no idea what your significant other actually likes , parks, malls, and the theatre are a good place to start. Parks give you a lot of time together to talk, but can get awkward quick if you two don't hit it off right away. Theatres are great because there isn't a lot of chit chat, but you don't exactly leave an impression. Malls are a good starting point because you can fill any 'dead air' with shopping or food, however there's plenty of time to chat and see the other person's interest. That's where we're headed... " Helga whispered, rubbing her arms quickly. Goosebumps prickled along her legs as she walked quickly towards the mall's parking lot that laid a few blocks away.

Arnold felt his heart twitch in guilt as he strode next to her- she had really put a lot of effort into making this work and he had completely forgotten to do one simple thing. He had to prove himself somehow. Hurrying to her side Arnold slipped his sweatshirt off of his shoulders, offering it to her.

"Are you cold?" He asked quietly. Helga blushed, looking down at the sweatshirt in contempt before grabbing it quickly out of his hands.

"…plus ten points." She muttered, slipping it over herself quickly. Arnold smiled and nodded, sure that this was going to be an interesting date indeed.

It only took a few moments to get to the shopping center. Arnold hadn't been there in quite some time, everything was fairly expensive and he didn't have much money to squander on little things. Helga seemed just as amazed by the large and decorated building as he was, he guessed she hadn't been here in a while either.

"So where should we start?" Arnold asked cheerily. Helga quickly looked from him to the map, a quiet energy of excitement building inside of her chest. With a gentle blush her eyes studied the map, her finger draping over the different stores and courts.

"Well…I guess it makes sense to just work our way up and back around…" Helga whispered softly. Arnold nodded placing his hands into his pockets as they headed down the broad hallways. The stores were all decorated with beautiful spring colors and flashy signs, he could see Helga eyeing a few of them longingly as they passed.

"Let me know if there are any you want to go look at." Arnold whispered to her. Helga snapped out of her daydream before coughing and shaking her head.

"As if I'd want to go in any of these girly froo froo stores." She mumbled in embarrassment. Arnold rolled his eyes, though he couldn't help but smile. He watched her in interest as her eyes started to wander again, her face lit up with curiosity. As they walked her pace slowed, her eyes glued on a small kitten sleeping peacefully in the pet stores window. Arnold looked at it and then to her before offering his hand toward it.

"Do you want to go into the pet store?" Arnold asked quietly as they passed by a window of happily playing pups. Helga turned, an almost invisible blush on her cheeks as she rubbed at her nose to show she wasn't interested.

"N-no…why would I want to do that?" Helga asked lowly. Arnold opened up the door, stepping inside.

Arnold shrugged, a knowing smirk on his face. Helga twisted uncomfortably, following him into the store as she stayed close and out of sight from the others.

"Well…I mean as long as we're here…" she reasoned quietly.

"What kind of pets do you like Hilda?" Arnold asked, moving toward the hyper puppies which nearly jumped out of their casings. He laughed softly, patting their head as Helga looked over his shoulder, seeming rather timid and scared for some reason.

"Tough things...you know, iguana's, lizards…snakes…that sort of thing" Helga whispered. Arnold laughed, picking a happy Labrador before offering it to her.

"What? You don't like cute and cuddly things from time to time?" He asked with a boyish smile. Helga yelped, jumping backwards and holding up her hands in defense as he pushed the dog in her direction. Arnold tilted his head, pushing the dog forward a bit more. Helga moved backwards slowly, her eyes not leaving the dog.

"Hilda…? You're not scared are you…?" Arnold asked, a hint of amusement in his voice. Helga looked up quickly, her face beet red as she shook her head.

"No of course not! It just stinks is all!" Helga yelped out. Arnold smirked, a dark gleam entering his eyes as he stepped forward, pressing the lab against her chest. She yelled out loudly, hiding her face into her hands as it licked at her crossed arms.

"Aw come on, it _loves_ you." Arnold teased.

"Get that mutt away from me!" Helga squealed, wrestling to get away from its lapping tongue. Arnold laughed softly as she twisted this way and that, her arms frantically pushing it away from her face.

"You think this is funny football head?" She whimpered out. Arnold shook his head quickly, pulling the dog back. She took a deep breath, finally free of its presence. He smiled apologetically, petting the happy pup as he spoke.

"No, you're right. I'm sorry Hilda…I just thought it was cute is all." He whispered putting the dog back into his case. Helga blushed, crossing her arms tightly as Arnold reached down into another casing. She quickly prepared herself, but immediately melted when he reappeared with a small and fluffy calico.

"…do you want to hold her?" Arnold asked with a smile. Helga glared down at the cat, not sure why she was still trying so hard to keep her walls up. However- it wasn't that easy to melt away years of isolation and defense…it was hard to admit the things she actually liked, the things that she was afraid of.

And yet he still knew.

"N-not really." She whispered turning her head.

"Do you know how?" Arnold asked making her cringe.

Bullseye.

"Here." Arnold whispered moving over to her side. With one hand he moved her arm around the kitten, using the other to keep him safe and balanced. The kitten rested its head onto her chest, his chestnut eyes bearing into her as she stuttered to keep her stance.

"Don't get too nervous, you'll just end up hurting her, just relax, she'll let you know if you're doing something wrong." Arnold assured, moving his arms away to let her hold the kitten on her own. Helga gulped as the kitten moved in excitement in her arms.

"See…? She likes you." Arnold whispered with a bright smile. Helga smiled as well, but quickly threw it off of her face, moving her shoulders up to keep the kitten at a good height.

"Don't get me wrong football head, you're just not loosing points here because this might be something SOME girls might like…" Helga mumbled, her fingers rubbing behind the kittens ears as it purred happily. Arnold smiled, rolling his eyes as Helga hid her beaming smile.

"Whatever you say Hilda."


	7. The Advise

The Advise

Everything went by far too quickly…the way that he laughed whenever she tripped over her own words, how though she scowled, his laugh didn't make her feel self conscious, how she wanted to make him laugh more and more until that beautiful smile was plastered over his face.

But of course it ends- and she's painfully aware of it. All those brilliant smiles couldn't erase the bigger picture, the fact that this was all a charade, that he was doing it as a way to get to lila- to practice…

And though that wretched her heart in two- she didn't regret a moment of it.

"So how'd I do?" Arnold asked, taking a bite from his hamburger as Helga sat across from him, poking at her meal, her eyes twisted in confusion as she pulled out what looked to be a hair. She was about to ask what he'd meant before remembering that she'd promised to critique him. She stared at the hair for a few moments before tossing it over her shoulder, quickly digging back into her meal. She needed a few more moments to compose herself.

"You did ALRIGHT…" Helga mumbled dragging on the last word. Arnold blinked, honestly surprised as he put down his food. Helga could have laughed at the disgruntled look upon his face but that would have ruined the illusion she was actually unhappy with him.

"Alright?" Arnold asked, his voice pitching up. Helga nodded indifferently taking another bite of her meal. Arnold seemed to run through the events in his mind before huffing and shaking his head.

"And what where are you pulling this from?" Arnold asked with a grumble. Helga took a large bite of her food to buy herself some time, to be honest everything had been perfect, as she thought it might be. The mall was a good distraction and Arnold had been very sweet, a gentleman through and through. A smile almost touched her lips.

There it was.

"Well first off, you forgot to plan the date." Helga mumbled putting her food down. Arnold seemed to have forgotten this and blushed in embarrassment, hiding himself in his food. Helga smirked leaning back into her chair as she twirled her hair restlessly.

"That's a no-brainer bub, I mean, if you mess that one up what's a girl to think?" Helga asked, making a point to drive his failure into his face. She didn't really want to, but she had promised to be honest…at least….deceptively honest.

"Besides that whole fiasco you didn't read me at all-" Helga whispered placing both of her feet up on the table. Arnold quirked his head at this, seeming to forget his embarrassment, instead replaced by curiosity, as he leaned forward.

"What do you mean?" He whispered.

"I mean I wanted you to kiss me." Helga whispered throwing her feet down on the floor. This she could work with, because it was the truth. She smirked, pressing her chest against the table as she inched forward to him; he backed away a bit, unnerved by her sudden ferocity.

"I wanted you to stop being that good boy you show everyone else and show me a little bad…" She whispered breathily. She could see the pink tinting his cheeks but she couldn't stop the words from coming out of her mouth, they spilled out so effortlessly she almost didn't have time to think of them.

"I wanted you to grab me, to be a little less passive- less of a snore…I wanted you to question me, interrogate me, drive me to a breaking point." She whispered lowly. Arnold gulped before thumbing the fabric of his shirt nervously.

"B-but that's not the type of guy that I am." Arnold insisted.

Oh how adorable he was when he was flustered.

Helga shrugged before sitting back down into her chair.

"This training isn't about YOU Arnoldo, it's about training you to be anything your date wants you to be. And today you failed miserably." She whispered folding her arms. Arnold knitted his brows in frustration, crossing his arms as well, mirroring her- though not purposefully.

"I'm not going to stop being myself just because somebody doesn't like it, that's lying." Arnold mumbled. It was Helga's turn to seem irritated. Slamming her hand into her forehead she groaned, clenching her fist.

"You just don't get it do you? Look bub, you don't need to 'stop being yourself' or whatever it is you were whining about. You just need to pick which side of yourself to show. I know for a fact you can be rough, sadistic even- if you're provoked. " Helga whispered slowly, as if explaining this to a child.

"I'm not asking you to ride up on a motorcycle and knock out a guy at some bar, I'm just asking you to not be the 'everyday friendly' boy I encounter every day. I want to feel like I'm seeing something special, like you're only being this lax because of me." Helga nodded, content with her words.

"Every girl feels this way. I want to see the bad side of you, others will want to see the sensitive or quirky side…they want something to complete them…at first you match them, match their personality with whatever's closest to your own- then, become their opposite, keep their energy and balance it out with your own." Helga whispered, hoping to all hopes that she was making sense. Arnold seemed to follow up to a certain point but she knew she'd have to delve deeper.

"Take me for instance. Had you been trying to make an impression on ME, you would start by adhering to thinks that I like, or making yourself noticeable by matching my roughness with your own…playfully of course, those kind of things need to be perfected over the years but you seem to do well enough when we're alone-" Helga stopped herself quickly, trying to keep back too much of the truth-

It was Arnold they were supposed to be exposing, not her…

"You…want me to fight with you…?" Arnold asked lowly. Helga sighed before rolling her eyes.

"Not FIGHT per say…more like keep up with…match my insults, make me remember you, not just for your normal self, but for the self that can stand up to me, or make me like you don't mind hurting my feelings…" Helga realized this must sound all too silly to Arnold so she tried to backtrack.

"Of course I'm a specific type of girl…any other one would probably cry or be hurt if you hurled insults at them the way I do you-…but every girl wants a man who CAN to some extent…" She was rambling now and she knew it so she just sighed and decided to move on.

"Alright, I can kind of understand what you mean about matching their personality…that's easy enough, but why would I do that and then try to be the opposite of them, it's contradictory-" Arnold mumbled. Helga merely smiled and took a small drink.

"It's girls Arnold…" she sighed trying to think of the right words. Why was it whenever she was with Arnold they never seemed to come?

"It's like…the bait on a fishing hook- it's there to get the fish interested, that's what matching their personality does. It lets them know you can relate to them, it makes them feel like you're similar, which is why it's important to also show how you're different." Helga whispered with a nod.

"We'll use me as an example again since I'm who you're practicing with. I'm tough, which means that I probably don't like weakness- so as bait, you show me that you can be strong. You can stand up to me." Helga nodded, moving a fry around absentmindedly.

"Once I see that you're not weak, you can see that…I might not be as strong as I say…or as tough…I have trouble with people, and emotions…so where I have trouble saying things like 'I love you'…you need to be able to say it, and understand it even when I don't….you should be those things that I can't…make me feel like you can teach me, and that I can teach you….and then, I'll feel like I NEED you…because you're the one who can do things that I have trouble with, the one who can talk to people where I just stumble, you can take my insults and fire them back, and we can both know that they mean nothing- nothing but that we're talking…nothing but a little playful game only we know." Helga whispered her voice starting to get softer.

"…but what if I can't be all those things…?" Arnold finally asked. Helga met his eyes and opened her mouth- but she stopped the words. She stopped the words she so wanted desperately to say. To tell him that he already was- that he always had been…

But she didn't.

Because he wasn't asking for her…he was asking for Lila.

"Well…obviously…you can't always be those things for a person." She whispered slowly, trying to regain herself.

"That's why they call it a soul mate after all right…? You need to find that one missing puzzle piece…chances are nine out of ten aren't going to fit- it's the one that does that counts." Helga gave a small smile and noticed that Arnold was staring. His eyes were so soft and surprised that she had to laugh to cover up her sadness.

"Of course this could all just be lovey goo goo that I picked up in some magazine so I'd have something to tell you." Helga said with a small shrug. Arnold looked down at his food but he seemed to have lost his appetite.

"Either way…it's a nice visual I think…" Arnold whispered. Helga bit her lip harshly before standing up, she couldn't handle this, not yet anyways. She needed to go home and prepare- she had no idea how hard this would actually be.

"Anyways, you get a C minus for effort and nothing more. I'm afraid this means you missed out on an important tip about Lila as well as a first date kiss. Should this have been formal I wouldn't call you back." Helga assessed. Arnold glanced up at her, but that look from his eyes hadn't gone away. She hated it, and she didn't know why.

It was like a look of pity…a look of confusion…

No…

It was a look of knowing.

And she didn't want him to know…

"…what…do you want it down in writing?" Helga spat out. Arnold shook his head, placing a few dollars down on the table.

"No I'm alright." He whispered. Helga nods, taking her coat off of the chair before placing it over her shoulders.

"Good…you didn't screw up entirely today so I'll tell you this much at least- take Lila somewhere open…first dates are important and she likes to talk…stay away from movies I guess." Helga couldn't imagine how hard it would have been to tell him these things, to act like she didn't care that she was helping him get the heart of some other girl, but once the words have left her mouth she realizes that the next time it won't hurt so badly.

She just has to distance herself…she just has to make herself believe she really is just trying to help him…

Because isn't that what she wants?

For him to be happy?

It doesn't take more than a second to conclude it is, and all of her hopes for the future of the two of them, the delusion that he'd somehow be more inclined toward her rather than Lila, the fear of losing him because of it- is gone.

And her shoulders feel so much lighter…

"…I guess I should get going…should I call her tonight…?" Arnold ask lowly, that small bit of light returning to his eyes. Helga looked down at her watch before swallowing hard.

"…Yes. And don't be so nervous football head, you two will have a great time." Helga whispered, and for the first time that evening, she felt that she was telling the complete and whole truth.


	8. The Better Grade

The Better Grade

"Helga…HELGA!" Harold's gruff voice shouted from across the auditorium. Helga jumped to her senses, her hands still tightly clasped onto her whistle as she suddenly blew on it, making the high ring echo through the ice rink. All of the boys had already stopped doing their rounds, but they all turned to the blushing girl in confusion.

"Helga are you alright…?" Sid asked sliding over to her. Helga glanced over at the clock; she had been spacing out the entire practice round, but a good ten minutes had already passed without her direction. Helga gave out a heavy sigh, rubbing her head as she skated into the middle of the rink with the rest of the boys.

"Y-yea I'm fine, don't worry about it bub." She mustered, trying to sound as angry and disgruntled as she could. She had obviously failed as all of the boys looked cautiously toward one another. It was obvious they had never seen her in such a downtrodden fret.

Everything reminded her of Arnold, from the way that the ice fell under her feet to the white shimmering lights that fell down upon them. Everything was a memory, a memory of how she had taken something beautiful and fucked it up.

Every time she'd managed to show him a little of herself, to give him one beautiful moment, she'd gone right around and made it tainted again. With a low sigh she spun in a small circle, playing with the puck. Today he would be swooning Lila, laughing with her, giving her those eyes he'd showed last night.

Maybe it would even go so well that they would-

Helga shook her head; they were both too idiotic and embarrassed to even think about something like that. So what did that say about her? She was still having a hard time getting rid of her jealousy, but mostly it was just sadness that inhibited her ability to help him.

"You guys can take a ten…I'm going to go sit down for a bit." Helga whispered before moving to the locker rooms. To her surprise all of the boys followed her. Perhaps they were just curious, maybe they were in their own little way trying to help. Just as she was about to turn and yell at them she found she didn't have the strength, and instead allowed them to follow.

"Helga…?" Stinky asked lowly. Helga sighed before sharply turning on her skate.

"What Stinky…?" She asked under her breath.

"…well uh, it just seems that you been mighty down lately." Stinky added, looking to the rest of the team for support. Harold nodded quickly and stepped forward.

"Yah! And not like we care or anything" He added quickly, looking away from her eyes as she raised a brow.

"But seeing as how the semi-finals are almost here and everything, we don't want you being a sad mope of a case." Harold finished. Sid nodded quickly joining the others.

"Yea, if you're not playing your best what the hell are the rest of us supposed to do?" Sid asked with his usual wide eyes. Helga tried not to laugh, but a small one escaped her. Shaking her head she sighed and looked back out at the rink, that was true, the rest of them were pretty much useless when it came to actually winning a game. The problem wasn't really that they were bad players, it was just they all were trying so hard to get to the goal as quickly and roughly as possible. She'd even caught the goalie trying to join the action in one mess of a game. Hockey wasn't just about beating your opponent silly, it was about keeping them at bay as well- making them play on your terms.

"…Fine." Helga mumbled with a small smile plastered to her face.

"But if I've got to act like I'm all happy to be here, you guys have to work on your defense, and I mean SERIOUSLY work on it, you got that?" Helga asked quickly. They all looked at one another, as if not realizing whether or not it was worth it. Finally they all agreed and nodded their heads.

"Good- then let's get to work!" Helga yelled out.

When Helga returned home she found an odd boy sitting atop her porch step. Forcing her feet to move she slowly approached him, his blonde hair still gelled down the way he did when he wanted to impress. Of course he was dashingly handsome with it down, but there was a certain appeal to that wild mess of a hair he usually wore. She could feel her heart racing as she walked up the steps towards him.

"…Hi Arnold." She suddenly called out, making his head snap back up. He quickly adjusted his clothes and got off of the handrails, his feet gingerly moving onto the cement. He gave her a smile, though it was a rather weak one. Her heart suddenly raced with what he might be wanting to tell her.

"…how'd your date go…?" Helga asked lowly. Arnold pushed his hair back again, a soft breath hissing between his teeth. He seemed to be debating his words but before Helga could repeat herself he had spoken.

"Great." He suddenly laughed out, his chest heaving as he fell back down onto the patio. Helga gave him a quizzical look before sitting down next to him. He almost leaned against her shoulder in seeming exhaustion, but thought better of it and pulled himself back up. She almost seemed disappointed.

He'd been up all last night thinking about it, about what he did right, what he could have done wrong, why he had been feeling so…incomplete, the entire night. He was suddenly rambling, explaining to Helga about how the date couldn't have gone better. She looked lovely, even more lovely than usual. He'd taken her out to the park, the sky was so sunny and warm, with a light breeze to cool them off. He'd cooked them lunch and laid out a blanket for them to sit upon, he told a few jokes and she laughed at all of them- even the crappy ones.

He asked her about movies and books and food, and she in turn answered with interest.

She had complimented him so many times he'd lost count, on his looks, his cooking, his voice.

It was like she was noticing him for the first time. And he her.

Every little thing she did was beautiful, the way she smiled, the way that her hair picked up in the wind and moved past her face- she was in every sense of the word- perfect.

And maybe that's why he'd left the date feeling so completely and utterly unfulfilled. How could you complete someone who was already perfect? How could you ever be that other half that she couldn't live without? It was of course, impossible for somebody to be perfect Arnold had reasoned. Maybe he just hadn't been allowed to see that other side of her yet, but how long would she keep that wall up-

How long would she just be perfect?

"…it sounds like you need to get her in an environment where you can actually see more of her." Helga mumbled without even noticing that the words had stumbled out. Arnold snapped his head to her, eagerly awaiting her solution to his dilemma. Helga groaned, rubbing her head in anxiety as she kicked her feet a bit.

"Listen you and I- we've known each other for a REALLY long time…and not just as passing friends, but something a lot deeper…maybe not friendship but-" Helga shrugged before biting her lip.

"You know things about me no one else does, and I the same. That's because that's how our relationship naturally evolved…can you honestly say that you knew me as well as you do now back in elementary school?" Helga asked softly. Arnold shook his head, resting his head on top of his hands.

"No…of course not…I thought you were just an asshole." He admitted lowly. Helga smiled and he was suddenly very glad that she did not take offense to it.

"It's the same with Lila…you couldn't see anything but my hate because you didn't know me- and you can't see anything but her perfection because you in turn, don't know her." Helga whispered softly to him. The worlds were tumbling out of her mouth now.

"The thing you have to ask yourself is- do you want to know the imperfections…do you want to know she's not as perfect as you think?" Helga whispered. Arnold stared at his hands for a long time, mulling this over. Her breath was caught in her throat as he finally whispered his answer.

"…yes." Arnold answered gently. Helga dumbly nodded, standing up.

"…then you need to bring her somewhere romantic, somewhere sweet- somewhere intimate." Helga whispered. Arnold quickly snapped his head back to her before grabbing onto her hand. Helga swallowed hard, looking back down at the boy.

"…you're still going to help me…?" He asked lowly. Helga could only nod. "Then…go out with me tonight…"

"…a…alright." Helga whispered, her cheeks suddenly bursting into a light red. With an angry glance she suddenly crossed her arms.

"But you'd better actually plan it this time!"

"Why is this thing never easy to get into?" Helga murmured to herself as she half attempted to zip up the back of her dress. Of course, had she not been buying time perhaps the dress would have proved less difficult, but as it was it was all she could do to keep from pacing. With shaking hands she slipped the zipper up her long and bare back, causing the dress to hug at her chest and hips. It was a simple thing, a soft strapless baby pink dress with just a bit of sheen hanging over the top layer of fabric.

She liked this one because no matter what you did to it, it still remained the same beautiful dress. Whether she was going out unwillingly to 'the latest' dance club hot spot, or sitting at a wedding reception with nothing to do, it was always beautiful, and always camouflaged into whatever the situation called for.

Tonight, it needed to be dazzling-

But not so dazzling that she outshined the actual star here…not so dazzling as to make Arnold think she wanted his eyes upon her. She crossed over the room, taking a few golden heels that never got used out of her closet. They slipped over her feet, their grecian style hiding how immensely large her feet were compared to the other girls. Her nails had already been painted, just a simple color to match the dress, before she crossed over and snuck into her mother's bedroom.

Helga only had dark colors for makeup, something that just wouldn't do with the light complexion she had been giving off tonight. After some searching she found a nice soft gold eye-liner that would do the job. She gently placed it over herself, having much more trouble than she would have originally thought. She usually placed her eyeliner on thick, and trying to get it to look nice with such small strokes was proving to be difficult.

After a while she finally just smudged it together, giving the gold a nice sheen over her eye lids.

Pass worthy, she noted to herself.

She still wanted to appear casual, just in case they weren't going anywhere to fancy, so Helga decided to allow her hair to sit upon her shoulders in their natural gentle waves. Grabbing onto Miriam's jewelry set she placed two small golden heart earring's on and then pulled her own locket out from her purse. It had lowered in size, walking around with such a hulking thing became obvious after a while, and she didn't want anyone becoming curious about what was inside.

But it still had his picture, it still had his smile, and it's place in her heart. Gently she clasped it over her neck and let it fall onto her collar bone. She didn't dare look in the mirror, she didn't want to know how she looked. Beautiful or ugly, the result of tonight would still be the same. With draping fingers she slowly made her way down the stairwell and to the door.

"Miriam, Bob, I'm going out, don't wait up!" Helga called out. A drunken murmur was all she could get for an answer before she stepped outside and into the chill air. Both Helga and Arnold jumped in surprise as she exited the door. She jumped because he was early, he jumped because she was beautiful.

Arnold nearly slipped off of his car as she approached, her almond eyes glimmering underneath the moonlight. The way that her dress hugged her body, the innocent flicker of those undeniable eyelashes, the way that she walked over to him as if she had no idea what a goddess she had transformed herself into.

"You're early…" She called out gently. "I thought I was going to meet you at the restaurant."

"That wouldn't be very gentlemanly of me." Arnold breathed out, still trying to catch the wind that she had managed to knock out of him. The made her smile, the bow on top of the package as she giggled, her head tilting a bit at his words.

"No I suppose it wouldn't would it! 10 points Arnoldo!" He tried to pick up his jaw, he was already making a complete fool of himself. Helga gave him a curious look as he quickly ran to her side and opened up the door for her. She laughed lowly to herself before getting inside. He knew she wasn't one for the gentleman act, but it still felt unnatural to treat her like just another one of the boys.

"So where are we going tonight?" Helga asked moving her legs onto the dashboard. Arnold gulped, keeping his eyes on the road and not the way her dress slipped up those impossibly long legs and to her waist. He gripped his steering wheel, trying to remember-

Her perfume smelled so sweet…was that perfume…?

"Arnold…?" Helga asked with a coy smirk. Something seemed to be dawning on her face and he flinched- did she know what she was doing to him? He narrowed his eyes a bit, a small smirk playing across his lips. Two could play at that game Miss Helga.

"Oh just a little place you might remember. We had our first date there you know." Arnold whispered with a small smile. Helga looked at him curiously, a bit of surprise crossing her face as they drove into the downtown area. Where on earth could he be taking her? She crossed her arms, finding she wasn't liking the mystery.

"You're not taking me to the food court again are you?" Helga asked lowly. Arnold laughed, shaking his head quickly.

"No, this was long before the practice date. I'm not surprised you don't remember, it was years ago." Arnold whispered under his breath, that happy smile still lingering on his lips. Helga fell into her seat a bit more, her mind searching for what he could be talking about. They'd never been on a date before that- …right?

"Arnold what are you-" Helga trailed off as the car pulled to a stop. She looked around, searching for a clue as to their whereabouts. This part of town had long ago been abandoned, since the expansion of the city the businesses had moved toward the more central part of town. But there, still shimmering with candles and a dimly lit patio sat Chez Paris.

Helga flinched, sending a quick glance over at Arnold. How could he have- when did he figure it- Helga felt her body shaking as he came to let her out of the car. Had he known this whole time that was her on the other side of the table? Had he known this whole time that Cecile had actually been Helga G. Pataki, the girl who made his life a living hell?

The thought seemed to be more than she could take. If that was true, then why didn't he say anything over the years…if he knew…why didn't he give her the chance to explain…

"Arnold…how did you-…" She trailed off as he pulled her out of the car with a giddy smile.

"Do you remember it now? We had a double date here with Phoebe and Gerald when we were kids. We ended washing dishes at the end of the night but-" He laughed, trailing off a bit. Helga felt her heart stop and then calm, a kind of sadness overcoming it.

That date…

Of course, they were both at Chez Paris after all…

"You have a good memory." Helga laughed out awkwardly. "I didn't even know this place was still open."

Arnold nodded rather excited as he pulled her happily toward the restaurant. She clunked a bit awkwardly beside him as he opened up the door for her. His happy smile couldn't help but rub off on her though as they entered the lone restaurant.

The inside was just as beautiful as she had remembered it. Velvet like curtains ordained the room, framing its intricate décor. Gold and red blessed veery inch of the room. They were obviously used to not having many customers as the many booths they once had were instead replaced by antique tables, the feet carved with such detail Helga wondered why they bothered keeping them hidden under tablecloths. The middle of the restaurant was bare accept for a red and gold circled rug that she assumed was supposed to be a place for guest to dance.

Candles flickered underneath the hanging lanterns, giving the entire place a soft glow.

"It's really changed hasn't it?" He asked with a happy smile. "…I think isolation has really given this place a certain charm…" He whispered. Helga nodded, not able to find the words as the waiter came forward to take them to their table. Arnold crooked his arm out for her to take, tenderly she placed her hand upon it and followed down the long aisle towards the center table.

The restaurant was bare of any customers. Helga assumed this was their 'hot spot' table as it sat in front of the live musicians who, at the sight of another human being, began to calmly play a drifting melody. The waiter left them for a moment before returning with two menu's and a vase filled full of wildflowers. Helga blinked for a moment, reaching out to touch them.

"What is…?" Arnold answered her before she could finish.

"Well, they always have roses on the table, but I know you hate them, so I asked them to pick some wildflowers from outside instead." Arnold admitted, suddenly feeling rather embarrassed. Perhaps asking them for wildflowers was a bad idea…maybe daisies would have been better? Before he could think on this too much however Helga reached out, taking a daffodil from the mix, she held it in her trembling fingers before nodding.

"…T-…thank you." She whispered, holding it close to herself. Arnold's smile became beaming as he nodded.

"Of course…and I assume I don't have to tell you to order whatever you want, it's my treat." Arnold said with a joking voice before returning to his menu. Helga held onto the flower for a few more moments, feeling her resolve weakening.

She wanted him to be happy she silently reminded herself.

But she wanted him to be happy with her so badly…

"How's hockey practice going?" Arnold suddenly asked from across the table. Helga glanced up at his genuinely interested eyes before sheepishly pushing her hair behind her ears a bit. How did he always know what to say to pull her out of her head right when he needed to?

"Good actually…we made a deal that if I stopped moping around during practice they'd work on their defense, as far as that goes they're defiantly holding up their end of the bargain. I think we might even have a chance at the semi-finals this year." Helga said with a small smile. Arnold's face seemed concerned and she had to backtrack what she had said to find out why.

"…are you doing ok Helga?" He suddenly asked. Helga laughed out nervously, nodding as she took a long sip of her water. She really wished the waiter would come back.

"Yea…just that time of the month I guess, those idiots actually thought something was wrong though- at least I got something out of it right?" Helga asked nervously. Arnold eyed her skeptically but dropped the subject.

"Just know that I'm here…if you want to talk." Arnold answered gently. Helga clenched onto her napkin, fighting herself over and over again. Stop…stop being so kind…stop pretending like you actually care.

Helga sighed biting her lip. That wasn't exactly fair…he did care, it was just in his nature. Helga leaned her head against the crook of her wrist, her mind far off from the moment.

"You know…when you like someone, and they don't like you back…it's not that bad…but when you like like someone…and they don't like you back…it hurts." Helga repeated, finding the words still oddly comforting. Arnold seemed to recognize them as she looked up into his eyes.

"…so…this is about a boy?" Arnold asked, taking a large gulp of his water. Helga nodded, no sake in hiding it now. Arnold seemed to think on this for a long time before raising his head from the table.

"Is that why you wanted…to do this?" Arnold asked, motioning to the date. "…practice…I mean…with me." He whispered. Helga sat up quickly shaking her head.

"No! I mean…yes…but no-…I mean…I don't know…" Helga breathed, letting her head fall back upon her hand. Arnold twisted a bit nervously as the waiter returned. They avoided each other's eyes for the moment as he took their orders, suddenly she wasn't feeling so hungry any more. The waiter must have sensed the sour mood for he walked over to the musicians and whispered something into the violinist ear. She merely nodded and the tune changed dramatically.

Helga lifted her head, allowing the music to sink into her ears. It was sweet, and slow, but happy…like liquid sugar dripping onto your lips. Arnold seemed to have gotten himself lost in the tune as well for both just stared at the way their fingers moved across their instruments, erasing all of the tension between the two.

"…I can't say that I'm not worried you're misplacing some of those feelings you have" Arnold suddenly said, his voice steady and calm.

"…but I am thankful for your help…and I'd say screw whoever this guy is that doesn't see you for the very beautiful girl that you are." Arnold whispered offering his hand out to her. Helga blinked lowly.

Wait…

You mean he didn't put two and two together? That that 'asshole' was actually him?

She could have cried if she wasn't already laughing. He pulled her up off of the chair and into his arms making her let out a pleasured gasp. He leaned his forehead against her own, his fingers moving down her bare back and to her hips.

"…dance with me…?" He whispered to her. She could only find the strength to nod as he whisked her onto the floor. Helga tenderly wrapped her arms around him, holding her body close as they turned in gentle circles. She rested her head against his neck, letting her mind wander. How many times had they danced like this only to pull away…laughing off the tension, pretending that the passion that consumed them was just a teenage flare up…?

His breath was hot against her skin as she dug her nails into his back, holding him tighter into her. She didn't want him to ever pull away again- she didn't want to laugh this off…she just wanted to stay here…

She wanted to consume him until he became as lost as she was…

"…where you always this tall…?" She whispered, her fingers dancing up his neck and into his hair. He shivered and she could feel the goosebumps riddling up his skin. He moved his hands tighter around her waist, pulling her body closer. She relished in his heat as her fingertips tickled down his back. Such broad shoulders…when did that little football headed boy become such a man…?

"…Arnold I-…" She felt the words get lost on her tongue, but she dared not try and speak them again. She wouldn't ruin this moment, she wouldn't give him a reason to pull away…


	9. The Better Grade Part Two

The Better Grade (Part Two)

"Oh you've got to be kidding me…" Helga mumbled as they walked outside of the restaurant. For as the two opened up the door to what should have been a smolderingly hot night in the middle of July, they instead were met with a sudden and unpredicted downpour, blocking their way to the car. Helga backed away from the street a bit more as the spatter from the street suddenly threw itself upon her legs.

Arnold groaned lowly under his breath, hiding his head in his hands as gave her a small glance from the side of his eye. Helga turned to him; her head dropping as she waited for him to speak whatever it was that was on his mind.

"What is it…?" She groaned, knowing that it would only be more bad news.

"…well…I left the top down- and- it doesn't exactly like to come back up…" Arnold admitted a bit sheepishly. Helga nearly whimpered as she pulled lightly at her hair. Her house was all the way across town- she didn't want to spend that in a convertible being pelted with rain droplets. Not to mention it wasn't safe for Arnold to be driving in this weather.

"What do you want to do?" Arnold finally asked, obviously thinking the same thing that she was. Helga let out a gentle breath, allowing her body to relax. There was no point in worrying about it too much right now, they'd just have to deal with the hand they were given.

"The boarding house isn't too far from here- let's just stop off at your house and wait until the storm dies down." Helga answered without too much thought. Arnold nodded in concurrence before handing her his coat jacket, gently placing a part of it over her shoulders as he headed out into the rain to start up the car.

Helga held it to herself in earnest, relishing in the heat and sweet smell that it produced. She had to hold back a small laugh at the way he mumbled under his breath, jumping into the car as he attempted to start it. The old machine whirred in protest as he hit the steering wheel, throwing the ignition this way and that to get it into motion.

Helga shook her head, taking off her heels and placing them next to his jacket on a bench in front of the restaurant. She hurried out into the street, moving her hands over her head to try and keep the rain off of her. Arnold looked up curiously as she headed toward him, she gave a gentle smile in return and motioned for him to pop the top.

Still a bit confused but not questioning what she was doing Arnold leaned down, grabbing onto the small gear underneath the ignition. Helga hurried over, placing her head underneath the hood as she scanned over the engine's parts. Arnold stood up, watching her curiously as she dug her hands into its innards, twisting and moving things around until they seemed to be to her liking.

"Well no wonder she doesn't want to start." Helga teased peeking over the hood and at the blonde haired boy.

"When was the last time you gave her a good tune up?" She asked, her face already covered in a bit oil from wiping her hands upon her cheeks. Arnold stuttered to find an answer, not really sure what to say. To him a car was just a car, he hadn't brought it into the shop for quite some time because he didn't have the money to fix it up, as far as any regular maintenance his grandmother usually handled that sort of thing.

Perhaps that should have been a red flag a while ago…

"…a while…?" Arnold finally answered, deciding it was useless to lie to her. Helga sighed heavily, throwing the top closed as she moved back across the street to grab their things. Her feet were already sore and aching from standing around in her heels, but the rain felt cool and brisk upon the swollen flesh. Although she would never admitted it there was something nice about being barefoot in a storm.

"Go ahead and switch the ignition, she should manage to get us back home, but you should learn to take better care of her." Helga lectured in a lighthearted tone. Arnold blushed some, nodding to her as he placed the key back into the ignition, turning it testily. To his surprise the car purred, stuttering into the on position.

"Wow, you're a miracle worker." Arnold gasped, rather amazed as he rubbed the car's dashboard, as if apologizing for not helping it earlier. Helga laughed jumping into the seat beside him, cradling his coat and her heels to her chest.

"Please Arnold, that's nothing." She answered, although it was obvious by the small smile on her face that she was happy with his compliment. He decided not to tease her about it as he put the car in drive and stumbled out onto the street. Helga moved her arms over her eyes, trying to block the onslaught of rain that pelted a top them, Arnold drove as slowly as he could, flinching as the wind picked up and stabbed at his bare skin with the small pieces of hail.

Thankfully the drive was short and though soaked, they were relatively unharmed and comfortable. Arnold quickly got out of the car, parking it as close as he could to the house before offering her his hand. Helga gladly took it as he pulled her out of the car and towards the house, a small smile upon both of their faces though they didn't completely understand why.

"Just so we're clear you can't deduct points for sudden weather changes." Arnold called out over the storm as he reached for his keys. Helga laughed shaking her head quickly as she leaned her body against his back, hugging him for body warmth as she shivered.

"Oh yes I can, I'm the one making the rules remember?" She reminded with a gentle laugh. Arnold clicked the door open, smirking as she rushed past him and into the heated living room. With a gentle sigh of relief she shook her body quickly like a wet dog, allowing the droplets to fall off of her and onto the floor.

"Ah! That's better." She breathed rubbing her arms quickly to warm herself up. Arnold laughed moving over to the hall as he motioned for her to follow.

"Come on, you'll catch a cold if you stay dressed like that." Arnold called out without much thought. Perhaps it was because she had decided to give him up, or the fact that he was always such a gentleman the thought of his words did not embarrass her- either way she shook out her legs once more, freeing them of droplets before moving up the stairs and to his room.

A smirk played on her lips as she realized how little had changed within it. Arnold hadn't bothered to change the somewhat childish style of his wallpaper, nor any of the furniture within it. The only new additions was a computer upon his desk and a few new collection figures upon his nightstand. It looked like his grandfather had finally given him a private bathroom, as there was a new door adjoining his room to a newly renovated part of the home. As Arnold rummaged through his drawers he pulled out a few of shirts and small pair of basketball shorts. He held it up for a moment, as if deciding something before handing one of them to Helga.

"Here, those should probably fit, let me know if you need something smaller, I'm sure Susie has something you could borrow."Arnold told her in a calm tone. Helga looked over the clothes before shaking her head softly.

"No, these will be fine. Thanks football head." Helga answered as she headed toward the bathroom. Arnold slipped off his own shirt as she opened up the door, despite herself Helga peeked behind her, taking in the gloss covered boy before slamming her head forward. Her heart skipped a few beats as she let out a low and cleansing breath. She'd forgotten how he'd had that effect on her.

Of course she'd seen a lot of naked men in her time- there was no way around that when you had the same changing room as the rest of the hockey team, but something about the way his lean body fell in such a muscular tone made her body shudder.

He didn't have a fantastic body by any means…so why…why did she always find herself so embarrassed and tense whenever he stripped off his shirt during practice, or started to change before she had managed to make her way out of the locker room? She quickly slammed the bathroom door behind her to keep from looking again as she heard his pants unbuckle.

Calm down, she told herself, he's just like any of the other boys- nothing special.

Arnold raised his head curiously as she closed the door behind her. He slipped his pants to the floor, moving a pair of pajama bottoms on over his body. He hadn't really thought much about changing in front of her like that- after all she had practically boasted about how comfortable she was being around the boys…maybe he had taken too much of a liberty though- after all she was still a girl.

He hoped that he hadn't embarrassed or made her feel uncomfortable as he slipped the other shirt he had set out over his torso. It took a bit for Helga to come back out of the bathroom, she shifted somewhat uncomfortably in the large and baggy clothes. The shorts held tight to her hips, but the shirt overtook even them, hanging softly off of her shoulders, slipping this way and that. Arnold blinked for a moment, not realizing how exactly small she had become compared to him.

"…what's that wilting little thing in the corner…?" Helga asked to break the silence as the storm outside raged. Arnold blinked, looking from her to where it was she was pointing. He laughed, moving over to the rather pathetic looking cactus that sat on his window sill. He sighed heavily, moving away the glass case so that she could see it in its entirety.

"Well THAT is the Echinocereus Poselgeri….it's supposed to be a very pretty flower, but it doesn't seem to want to bloom for me." Arnold answered with a hint of frustration. He threw up his arms, talking straight to the plant now as he leaned forward to it.

"I do everything I can, everything the book says to, but it still keeps this ugly little form…" He mumbled. Helga moved to his side, staring down upon it before gently pricking her fingers against the plant's small needles.

She let out a yelp and pulled away as her finger bled where it had pricked her. She eyed Arnold as he turned to see if she was ok.

"Nasty little thing isn't it?" Helga asked in a joking tone as she sucked the blood back into her lips. Arnold laughed a bit nervously nodding as he replaced the case.

"Well only if you try and touch it." Arnold retorted, giving her a small look as she rolled her eyes. Helga blushed a bit, still nursing her finger as he sat down upon the couch, patting beside him for her to sit.

She plopped down clumsily next to him, her eyes traveling to the glass roof as the rain poured down harshly upon them. The storm showed no signs of letting up so allowing herself a moment of selfishness she relaxed into his shoulder, her head digging into his neck as she rested her hand against his leg. Arnold watched her curiously, following her movements.

He could feel the lines between the reality of their relationship and their 'practice' play blurring as she closed her eyes in sleepiness, her chest moving in small breaths. Deciding that this was still a part of the test Arnold moved his fingers down to her hand and held onto it gently. This was technically 'Arnie' and 'Hilda's' second date, so holding her hand should be acceptable- especially if he was reading her signals correctly.

Was this what she was lecturing him about the other day? Was she testing him on what he had learned?

"So how'd I do…?" Arnold asked with a coy smile. Helga shot her eyes to him, a small inaudible laugh escaping her lips. Besides the sudden change in weather she couldn't even pretend that tonight wasn't perfect.

She let out a gentle smile before nodding into him.

Alright football head, you won this round…

With a stuttered breath she crossed her arms in stubbornness, dragging his hand with her own. At the movement he slowly started to rub at her skin, making her shiver. Fighting to get the words out she took in a deep breath.

"A minus." She finally let out. Arnold laughed before shaking his head.

"What's the minus for?" He whispered. She held up her head, her nose pointed upward.

"I don't believe in perfection." She answered simply. Arnold only laughed that silly wonderful laugh and nodded, his fingers still playing with her own. Helga nearly whimpered, letting out a soft sight of content instead. Arnold seemed to enjoy this as he continued to tease her.

"So what do I get for such a good grade..?" Arnold asked her, his voice dropping low as he nudged his head against her own. She smirked, pulling away so that his breath wouldn't tingle against her skin. What would his prize be…?

She had such a nasty habit of not planning ahead that she seemed to make up the words as she said them.

"…well…you've won two things." Arnold eyed her suspiciously as she pulled herself out of his shoulder to face him.

"For such a good grade I'll give you some important tips about-" Helga had to pause to get out the word "Lila….she has an ice performance this weekend right before prom. Surprise her there with white chocolate, not milk or dark, she's allergic to both."

After a moment Helga added-

"And yellow roses…she likes yellow roses." Helga whispered.

"And what kind of flowers do you like Helga…?" Arnold asked under his breath. The question startled her, but she tried desperately not to show it. Helga kept her eyes glued to him before sending a glance back at the witling little cactus that sat on his window sill.

"…I think that I'm starting to feel a little partial to the Echinocereus Poselgeri." Helga answered with a small smirk. Arnold let out a gentle laugh as she kept her gaze stern upon him. Moving to look at her from the corner of his eye he pushed his hair back nervously.

"And my second prize…?" He asked under his breath.

"Well…y-you're second prize…" Helga answered, her mouth struggling to make the words. "Is a goodnight kiss...I-I think 'Hilda'…would want you to kiss her right now…"

Arnold stared at her for a moment as Helga twisted uncomfortably, wishing he would just get it over with or push her away, anything but the awkward staring he was doing now. With a soft gulp Arnold only nodded, his hand gently raising to her cheek as he spoke.

"…I-…I haven't done this in a while." He whispered to her. Helga nodded, closing her eyes as she leaned herself forward.

"…that's what practice is for…right?"


End file.
